




LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 

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TIMOTHY COOP. 



A TEIP 



ABOUND THE WORLD 



A SERIES OF LETTERS 



BY 



TIMOTHY COOP AND HENEY EXLEY 



Pitl) ©tneloe Hlbertijpe ^latea 



CINCINNATI 
K. C. HALL & COMPANY, 180 ELM STREET 

1882 







Entered according to act of Congress, in the year 1882, by 

H. C. HALL & CO., 

In the office of -the Librarian of Congress, at Washington, D. C. 



Electrotyped at 

Fkanklin Type Foundry, 

Cincinnati, O. 



PREFACE. 

In sending forth from the press books and letters of 
travel, a very common statement is made — that the letters, 
etc., were not written or intended for the public eye, but 
only for the enjoyment of the immediate friends of their 
writers. Without being able to say just the same thing, this 
much, however, is literally correct, that neither of the 
writers of the letters here sent forth, had any idea whatever 
of publishing a book; scarcely, indeed, of publishing even a 
series of letters for the Christian Standard, in which they 
appeared. As they were written and sent off from different 
parts of the world; it was always with the fear that they 
were very far below, in their interest and worth, the require- 
ments of such a paper. It is no small gratification to the 
writers, to find that, where they had feared so much, the 
readers of the letters have enjoyed so much ; and so many of 
them express a wish to possess them in a permanent form. 
Such as they are, we send them to the churches, greeting, 
but with much fear and diffidence. Did the readers know 
the real difficulties under which they were written, more 
than common allowance and indulgence would be granted 
for whatever faults may mar the letters, either in matter or 
style. 

We confess to a little real satisfaction, in thinking that, 

with all their blemishes, they are a kind of pioneer trip 'round 

(iii,) 



iv. PREFACE. 

the world series of letters, amongst us a people, so far as we 
have any knowledge of the matter. 

In every case where we have had to draw upon other 
sources than our own, on matters of realest interest, but 
often entirely beyond our own observation, we have drawn 
from the best and most reliable ; in the first place, that we 
might ourselves know something about the strange lands we 
were visiting, and so be enabled to gather instruction and 
pleasure at every point of our journey — without which it 
could not be done, except to a small extent; and in the next 
place, if we published any letters whatever, the readers of 
them should share in the feast. For many interesting items 
about missionaries and their work, such authorities as Revs. 
Taplin, Ingliss, Eeid and Williams, all toilers in the fields of 
the world; for facts concerning the various lands we visited, 
the natives, natural history, and kindred matters, Miss Bird, 
Canon Tristram, Harcus, the Historian, of South Australia, 
Boswick, F. It. G. S., Historian of the Tasmanians, have 
been our sources; besides which, a constant lookout was 
kept for everything that might keep us abreast with what 
was transpiring around us, as we moved from city to city, 
and from land to land. 

In suffering this little book to go forth amongst the 
brethren, to whom we send it with Christian greetings, we 
send it in the hope that it will help, under the Divine bless- 
ing, to awaken more interest in the work of missions, and to 
bring together, as never in the past, all who are pleading for 
a full return to the right ways of the Lord, into closer bonds 
of brotherhood, warmer sympathies, and world-wide united 
activities. 



PREFACE. v. 

If our small contribution in these letters, shall help in 
even a very small degree, to accomplish this, our long jour- 
ney will not have been altogether in vain. It is our abiding 
conviction that the gospel calls on us, and our assumed posi- 
tion demands of us, that we seek the extension of the Re- 
deemer's kingdom ; not only where Christ is preached, and 
where His gospel needs to be freed from the traditions of 
men, but in the regions beyond us, and where dark habita- 
tions of cruelty still abound, and teeming millions still sit in 
the darkness, and in the valley of the shadow of death, and 
where no light is. 

We are sure that if all the churches in America could 
have seen what we saw — the many large churches, and so 
intensely alive to the interests of the kingdom of our com- 
mon Lord, t'hey could not help but thank God and take 
courage. It appeared to us that the churches of Australia 
have, for their years and opportunities, gone beyond what 
their brethren elsewhere have done. 

With many fears, and some hopes, we venture to send 
forth these letters to the churches, hoping that they may 
prove to be at least one link in a golden chain of Christian 
love and world-wide sympathy, that shall help to bind them 
all together. 

We pray that a rich blessing from the great Lord of the 
harvest may rest upon them, and cause them to minister to 
the joys of His people, and the salvation of men. 

T. Coop, H. Exley. 



CONTENTS. 

LETTER I. 

The trip proposed — Given up at home — Leave-taking — Stormy start- 
ing — Meeting of the travelers — Curious mistake — Gentle- 
manly conductors — American promptness — Mistake rectified 

— Bound for San Francisco — Visit to salt Lake City— Walker 
House — Mormons — Polygamy — Talk with Mormons in street 
cars — Mormons growing in numbers — Visit to the Tabernacle 

— Temple — Visit to Zion cooperative store — Talk with Presi- 
dent of all the Mormons — Their missionary activity — Thor- 
ough organization — San Francisco — An old acquaintance — 
The gospel in California — Slow progress — A difficulty removed 

— Parting songs and prayers — On the sea at last. . . . 11-23 

LETTER II. 

Sandwich Islands — Honolulu — Visit on shore — As the Islands used 
to be — As they are now — Missionaries and their work — Lep- 
rosy—Episcopalians — Death of Queen mother — All aboard — 
Swimming boys — A sick traveler. 24-31 

LETTER III. 

Safely in New Zealand — More about Sandwich Islands— Volcanoes — 
Mauna Loa in 1859 — Land rocked like sea— Pillar of fire — 
River of molten lava — Bottomless pit — Awful grandeur — 
Fountain of fire — River of fire — Alone at sea — Flying fish — 
Preaching on ship-board — Clerical smallness — Serious conse- 
quences of a slight mishap — Severe suffering — Crossing the 
Equator — A sleek Jesuit — A lost day, and a puzzled doctor — 
Laid up at Auckland — A city in commotion — Ministering 
Angels — A Christian home , 32-40 

LETTER TV. 

A busy man — Pleasant things — Almost with us — Preaching under 
difficulties — Old disciples — Papakura — A model Christian 
family — Ye did it unto me — A country ride — Scared horses — 
Bushranging — Another ride, and a fine time — A happy fisher- 
man—Getting stronger — Better rub than rust — Precious fruits 

— A gracious time — Leave-taking again— A stormy voyage — 
Native New Zealand clergymen — ^eekinsr for Disciples — 
Found the firstling of an ass — Church at Wellington — Two 
confessions — A prosperous church — On the sea again — Mighty 
waves — Another church — A . pleasant surprise — Farming 
prospects — A stormy time — A quiet haven 41-54 

LETTER V. 

A sailor's home — Churches iu Dunedin — A successful preacher — 
Open fields — Material in the churches — Call for a Pan Chris- 
tian council — Enemies in the dark — "The enemy is yonder"— 
Preaching in Dunedin — Bound for Australia — A lost sixpence 

(Vii) 



viii CONTENTS. 

— Tax to Neptune — Wonderful progress of New Zealand — Life 
not too anxious — Everything solid — Loafers scarce — A lump 
of gold — Farm produce — Mild climate — Cloth manufacturing 

— The smallest chapel — The largest clock — Dunedin from the 

Bay — Daily papers 55-65 

LETTER VI. 

New Zealand thrift — Business hours — General characteristics — All 
good — General diameter, English — The native population — 
Once cannibals — Dwindling away — The pig a civilizer — Mao- 
rie superstition — A prophet — Chief hindrances to civilization 

— Precision at drill — Cruel cannibalism — Captives tortured — 
Missionaries and difficulties — Romanist activity — Te-Whiti 
and the gospel — "Is not that grand ? " — What might be done — 
Why it can not 66-75 

LETTER VII. 

In Australia — The Rip — Melbourne — Human nature — A touching 
scene — Brothers met — Glad welcome — Wonderful city — 
Buildings — Library — Museum — Parks — S. S. Picnic — City 
Hall — Great organ — Area of Victoria — Population nearly all 
English — Enterprise and wealth of colony — Gold-fields — Li- 
braries — Schools — Education — Admiration compelled — A 
marvelous city — Ranks witli the best — Labor and wages — 
Holidays — International Exhibi-.ion — Extraordinary progress 

— Talk with a Baptist minister — Christian Churches — Im- 
mense meetings — Travelers impressed into service — Beware 
of Hymns — Christmas day — A good time — Sending up a bal- 
loon — A social tea — New arrivals from England. . . . 76-89 

LETTER VIII. 

Off for Adelaide the Beautiful — Storm after storm — Friends to wel- 
come — Area of South Australia — Colony founded — Histori- 
cal tree — A free Slate well founded — Population — Religion 
flourishes — Care for the suffering — A young colony's great ex- 
ports — Vast wealth — Roads — Bridges — Telegraphs — White 
fellows' devil — Public parks — Games — A beautiful city — The 
press — Education compulsory — Teachers reasonably paid — 
University — No religious tests — Yet it is the city of "churches 

— A handsome gift — Land office — Magnificent gardens — Parks 

— Aslonishing to all — Country visit — A private gentleman's 
home 90-101 

LETTER IX. 

A great oil country — Hot winds — Rainfall — Wheat production — 
Healthy climate — Aborigines — Beings with spears in their 
, heads — Boomerang — Healing the sick — Squeezing and danc- 
ing — To make them Christians — " Hang them by a' means, sir" 
— "What him say " — Infanticide — Native customs — Origin lost 

► —Savage life hinders increase — Language remnant of a noble 
tongue — No self-elevation — Lost Englishman — Churches of 
Adelaide — Grand tea-meeting welcome — Proportion of Dis- 
ciples to population — A model S. s>. building — Faithful, but 
not procrustean. 102-111 

LETTER X. 

Separation at last — A long looked for joy given up — Laboring alone 

— Another comfortless voyage — Back to Melbourne — The 
Melbourne churches — Sunday-schools — The banner city of the 



CONTENTS. ix 

Disciple world — A model church —With large heart and open 
hand — A country church — A pleasant visit to see and help it 

— Public houses— .Preaching in Melbourne again— The final 
resurrectio- —A handful of dust — A bunch of flowers — Ventur- 
ing 10 lecture — Another social meeting — Another good-bye — 
Off to Tasmania — The Albatross — Mutton birds — Sea-serpent 

— Tasmania — Launceston — People and churches — Workman's 
club — Population of colony — Hobart — Mount Wellington — 
Climate — Large exports — Education compulsory — Wise en- 
couragement — Aborigines all dead — A brave church — Left 
almost alone, yet struggle on — A sudden death —Another 
alarm — Joyous success — A self-sacrificing church — How to 
help struggling churches — Loving hospitality —Fern tree 
bower — The Derwent — Fine privileges — Farewell to Hobart 

— Another distressing voyage — On the Parliament House-top — 

Too late — Another voyage contemplated 112-125 

LETTER XL 

Tasmanians — 111 treatment of natives — A dying man's testimony — A 
fact as remarkably as Dr. Tanner's fast — First Governor present 
at Bunker Hill — A penal settlement — First Wedding — Run- 
away convict —Forgets his mother tongue — Cruelties on the 
natives — Nearly whole race die rejecting Christianity — A re- 
markable virtue in savages — S'aughtered to make room for 
sheep — Infanticide, result of cruelty — Women suckle pups — 
Prayer-ongs for absent husbands — Shell-heaps — Obtaining 
fire — Cause of incurable enmity — A drunken officer — A 
stolen woman — Woman wantonly shot — Remarkable provid- 
ence — Last male Tasmanian — killed by drink — His head 
stolen — Last Tasmanian woman — Readings of phrenology, 
and readings of fact. 126-139 

LETTER XII. 

Come over and help us — Bay of Sydney — Search for Christians — Un- 
expected — Kindly welcome — A spoiled city — Commercial im- 
portance — Mineral wealth of New South Wales — Street rail- 
ways—Meat exportation to England — Scientific methods — 
Wealth in stock — Sheep-shearing — Winter in June — Oranges 
and flowers — No snow — Gardens — Libraries — Readers — Mu- 
seum — Universities — Outdoor preaching — Aborigines throw- 
ing boomerang — Poisoned arrows — Christian Churches — 
Worthy of imitation — Striking providence — Reaping after 
sowing — Preaching in the poor-house — The spirit of Christ — 
Church in the house — A berth engaged at last. . . . 140-154 

LETTER XIII. 

Religion the true civilizer— Marvelous contract — Four translations 
carried on one ship — Missionary difficulties — Self-sacrifices — 
Constant peril — Stooping to save — Often a martyr — Amusing 
ignorance — White fellows' supposed mothers and wives — 
Origin of languages — Let us eat plenty of flour — Missionary 
work not a pleasure trip — The Master'sgrerU lesson — Washing 
disciples' feet — Mark Twain outdone — Kind of men and 
women wanted — Episcopalian examples — Bishops Patterson 
and selwyn — Christly work — Girded with towels — Seeking 
to save — Missionary must denationalize himself — Patterson 
martyred — New Zealand savages — Eleven men killed and 
eaten — Power of the gospel — Missionaries must lay all at foot 
of cross — Missions cost inTmey — St Xavier's devotion — Joy 
of helping to save — Then the final victory — Universal joy. 155-166 



x CONTENTS. 

LETTER XIV. 

Gathered fragments — Abiding impressions — Glories of the land — 
Wonders of the sea — Coleridge's hymn — Depths of the seas — 
Most ancient land — Oldest forms of bird-life — Volcanic forces 
still active — Waikato wonders — Raised beaches — Stranded ves- 
sel—No snakes — No lion, tiger or wolf — Man a recent intro- 
duction' — Hunted the wingless moa — Birds sixteen feet high — 
Ground ovens of first settlers — Barbarous feasts — Bones of 
birds and children — Ma orie skeleton — Advent of the Maorie 
race — Genealogy of a noble family — Came from the Sandwich 
Islands — Native songs collected — Feather buried — The last 
relic of the moa — Tasmania— Australia in its natural history 

— Tasmanian tiger devil — A friendly caution — Sea-weeds — 
Kangaroos— Leap fifteen feet — Australian animal life stands 
alone — Marsupials — Monotremes — Duck-billed platypus — 
Spiny ant-eater — Gigantic fossil lions — Bears and kangaroos 

— Serpents — Strange fishes — Sharks — Kangaroo hunting — 
White ant — Borer — Cactus — Ferns — Parasites — Medusse — 
Octopus — Giant trees 167-179 

LETTER XV. 

On the sea — Great waves — Retrospect — Sixteen baptisms — Open 
communion —-Faithful, but not heresy hunters — Armor- 
plated fish — Sea weeds — Roeky coast — A birth-day and social 
gathering — A loving gift — Farewell gathering — Accompanied 
to the ship — Alone — Melbourne again — Adelaide and friends 

— Unabated storm — Ocean birds — Aborigines — Some Mission- 
ary success — Far away — Lunar rainbow — The great and wide 
sea — Southern cross — The Red Sea — "Sorrow of the sea" 

— Buried in the deep — Sinai visible — Egypt and Israel — 
Burning desert — Arab tents — Suez — Trading Arabs — Grasp- " 
ing whites — Suez canal — Camping Arabs — Port Said a hard 
place — Beggars — Veiled women — Taking on coal — Men al- 
most naked— Free fight — Confusion of tongues — Injured 
man — Curious Treatment — Thieves on ship — Backsheesh — 
In the Mediterranean — Mount iEtna — Straits of Messina — 
Stromboli — Vesuvius — Pillar of fire and cloud — Electric 
Light — Wonderful effect — See Naples and die — Lofty houses, 
Narrow streets — Poor people — Monks and priests — Naples not 
the best place in which to die — Beggar girls — Consigned to 

the antipodes of heaven — Region of wonders left behind. 180-201 

LETTER XVI. 

Gibraltar — Bay of Biscay — A feeble folk — Mr. Plimsol and the de- 
vouring sea — England in sight — The stars and stripes — Lon- 
don once more — Brotherly greeting — Old time friends — A 
Bible talk — Southportand presentation — Not a strong church 

— Garfield and our uncrowned Queen. Liverpool work — So- 
cial tea and presentation — Going to London — Perhaps not 
wise — Bound for the West — Old Disciples — A precious lesson 

— Old times and loving cooperation — Final adieu — Frivolous 
passengers — Safely on shore —Unexpected welcome — Well- 
known hospitable home — Incurable mischief — A broken 
sickle — Brings important telegram — Hasty preparations — How 
we started on the long journey — Expenses — Life — Counting 
the cost — Redeeming the time — Acts of the apostles — Strik- 
ing facts — Lesson learned— Wonderful gentleness of the gos- 
pel — Parting glance at Christian work in colonies — Work 
needed done — Universal cooperation — The journey and its 
perils over — Responsibilities remain 202-221 



A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 



LETTER I. 

FEOM OMAHA TO THE PACIFIC. 

On Friday evening, September 17, 1880, I received 
a telegram from Bro. Coop, proposing to me what 
amounted to a trip around the world — not for pleas- 
ure and health only, but to take a brief survey of 
whatever of mission work might fall in our path on 
the journey. 

In the true spirit of missions, my dear wife at once 
consented to give me up, and at no small cost to her- 
self of heavy care, hard work and real privation. A 
deluge, almost, of rain fell during the night, making 
it doubtful if it would be possible to drive over the 
seven miles intervening between me and the Union 
Pacific depot at Lincoln. 

On Saturday morning, at five o'clock, gathering 
my dear ones around me, and all kneeling in prayer, 
commending them to the Father's care, I left home 
once more, "not knowing what should befall me." 

(11) 



12 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

My son drove me to Lincoln, the water on my own 
farm running over the bottom of the buggy. Reach- 
ing Omaha at 12:15, 1 found Bro. Coop quietly enjoy- 
ing a lunch in the sleeping-car. The moment he 
saw me he was on his feet and off to the ticket-office. 
In purchasing a ticket to San Francisco, one of 
those curious mistakes occurred which involve several 
others. In the hurry of the moment, whilst Bro. 
Coop paid down the money for a first-class ticket, the 
agent, by mistake, gave him an emigrant ticket! 
Neither of them observed the mistake. Going then 
to the office of the Pullman Sleeping Car Company, 
the agent, without observing the mistake, sold him a 
ticket for the sleeping-car, handing both tickets to 
me. I did not observe the mistake either, and show- 
ing them both to the keeper of the car, he also failed 
to see it, and passed me in. By and by the train 
moved off, and the conductor examined the ticket and 
checked it off — and he did not discover the mistake 
either. 

On Lord's day afternoon, when a new conductor 
came on the train, the moment he saw the ticket, he 
said: "I can not honor that ticket!" Then the mis- 
take was apparent enough. A telegram was sent to 
Omaha from the next station to ask about the mis- 
take, and on Monday evening we received an answer 
correcting it. The conductors were all exceedingly 
courteous in the whole matter. 

At most of the hotels on the whole line from 
Omaha to San Francisco, the meals provided are very 



FROM OMAHA TO THE PACIFIC. 13 

much worse in quality, and the charge for them just 
as high, as in the superbly splendid Palace Hotel of 
San Francisco. Some of them are not much better 
than places designed to give very poor meals at very 
extortionate charges. 

After leaving Omaha, we were astonished at the 
universally desolate aspect of the whole country. It 
requires more than the average stock of love of coun- 
try to see anything beautiful for very many hundreds 
of miles. A sail up the river Clyde, in Scotland, or 
the river Hudson, in New York State, w T ill furnish 
more to delight the eye and satisfy a love of the 
beautiful than the whole distance from Omaha to San 
Francisco. Desolation holds supreme dominion. 

Finding that we could spend one night and most of 
one day in Salt Lake City, and still be in time, with 
nearly two days to spare, to spend in San Francisco 
before embarking for Australia, we broke our journey 
at Reno, and taking the cars on the Utah Central 
Pacific at 7 p. m., in about two hours we were in the 
far-famed city of Mormons and polygamy. Of course 
our curiosity was intensely alive, and we did our best 
to gratify it in the few hours at our disposal. We 
put up at the Walker House, the best hotel in the 
city. Whether the owners are Mormons, we did not 
clearly ascertain. 

The city itself is most admirably laid out. The 
streets, miles in length, are 132 feet wide, including 
the very ample sidewalks. Most of the streets are 
planted on either side with a splendid line of the 



14 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

locust tree, which here did not seem to be so subject 
to the ravages of the borer as in Iowa or Wiscon- 
sin. The shade afforded by them is very agreeable, 
whilst underneath each line of shade trees, close to 
the curb of the sidewalk, there runs a fine stream of 
clear, cool water, brought from the mountains. Of 
course, Salt Lake being to the Mormon the Zion of 
the last days, it is very natural that he should call at 
least one of the rivers of the valley, the Jordan. 
Located on one of the banks of the Utah Jordan, it 
is said, resides an apostle or bishop of the saints, who 
has the rare faculty of ruling about eleven wives! It 
is, however, waggishly suggested that he does some- 
times sing in plaintive tone — 

"On Jordan's stormy banks I stand," etc. 

As we were nearing Salt Lake City on the cars, we 
became aware that we were in close proximity to both 
a Mormon apostle and a bishop. We dropped into 
conversation with them, and were not a little sur- 
prised to find the apostle as agreeably communicative 
as one could desire. He pointed out objects of inter- 
est on the road, told us he had been to England, and 
had held "conferences" in nearly every county in the 
kingdom. He told us that if we were at the Temple 
about 11 o'clock on the next day, he would introduce 
us to the President of the church. 

After reaching our hotel, and taking supper, we 
had a stroll through one or two of the streets of Salt 
Lake City. The quiet and order are very noticeable, 



FROM OMAHA TO THE PACIFIC. 15 

At least three-fourths of the entire population are 
Mormons, although the Protestant Episcopalians, the 
Methodists, Catholics, Presbyterians and Congrega- 
tionalists, have each a church edifice in the city. 
Every business man to whom we spoke was a Mor- 
rnan — excepting one or two- — and apparently, most 
earnestly so. They were all, without exception, ready 
at once to enter upon a defense of the system, and 
like men who had entire faith in it. We were not a 
little surprised to find that in not one of them, with 
whom we conversed, was there even a shade of timid- 
ity, but in all a quiet, earnest, fearless readiness to 
avow their faith and defend it. Stepping into the 
street-cars, in which were three gentleman besides our- 
selves, we entered into conversation with them, ap- 
parently all strangers to each other, and found they 
were all Mormons. The eldest of them, in answer to 
our questions, told us that polygamy was not an insti- 
tution for the richer Mormons only, but for the poorer 
ones aiso, and that great numbers of workingmen had 
more than one wife. This man was a Scotchman ; 
told us he was married, had one wife and five chil- 
dren, but that his wife often pressed it upon him to 
take a second wife ! His love for her, however, was 
so supreme, that he would not do so, lest, although 
she strongly desired it herself, he should grieve her by 
so doing! It was a strange tiling to hear a Scotch- 
man calmly enter into reasons in defense of the sys- 
tem. Every man to whom we spoke — and we spoke 
to many — answered our questions on the matter, like 



16 A TRIP ABOUND THE WORLD. 

men who believed it to be a divine institution, rees- 
tablished- by direct revelation in these latter days. 
Another, with whom we entered into conversation, 
told us he was from Denmark, formerly fire- works 
maker to the King of Denmark. He said, in reply 
to our questions, that all his expectations in coming 
to Utah had been more than realized. All of them, 
when asked if they did not expect the General 
Government would put polygamy down, answered, 
"Never." Another, a tradesman, and one of the 
" Seventy," said to us, " Do you think, if I did not 
know that this was of God, that at the call of the 
church, 1 would leave my family and business, and 
without scrip or purse go on a mission to Europe?" 
He was, perhaps, 36 years of age, and had been on 
such a mission. He informed us that about three 
companies of Mormons, of about 400 each, had ar- 
rived at Salt Lake City, and that another company of 
about the same number was expected in a few days, 
and all of whom they had distributed, or would in 
two or three days, amongst their numbers, so that 
hardly one could be seen about the city in a day after 
their arrival. It is evident to almost the blindest 
observer, that apart from the religious infatuation 
w r hich has drawn them together, the most consum- 
mate business skill enters into everything they do. 
We visited the vast establishment called Zion Co- 
operative Mercantile Institution, all over which Ave 
were shown with the utmost readiness and courtesy. 
It is 330 feet long, by 99 in breadth, and filled from 




LNRY EXLZY, 



FROM 031 AH A TO THE PACIFIC. 17 

basement to topmost room with such an array of mer- 
chandise as the finest mercantile establishment in 
Christendom might be proud of. 

After this we went to. visit the Tabernacle, and the 
Temple now in course of erection. One of the Mor- 
mon officials most courteously conducted us to the 
great Tabernacle, in the Temple Block. It is 233 
by 133 feet, inside measurement, and consists simply 
of one great roof, supported by 46 parallelogram pil- 
lars of red sandstone, and springs with a single stride 
from side to side and from end to end. It is ellipti- 
cal in form, and from ceiling to floor is 70 feet. It 
has a seating capacity of 13,452, and at their gather- 
ings it is often filled in every part. Perhaps there is 
hardly a building in *the world, of equal capacity, 
more perfect in its acoustics than this. Good ears 
can hear a pin drop, from the farthest part of it. Bro. 
Coop stood in the place of the speaker, near the great 
organ, and Bro. Exley went to the farthest point 
away from him, in the gallery, and repeated, in a 
low, conversational tone, 

a Rock of ages, cleft for me," etc. 

Coop could hear every word, whilst Exley could hear 
him saying, " Slower." It boasts of possessing the 
second largest organ in America (some say the third). 
When it was constructed it was the largest that had 
been built in America, and built by Utah artificers and 
from material obtained in the Territory. The pipes 
number nearly 3,000, the largest being 32 feet long 



18 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

and 2 feet square on the inside. The entire structure 
is 58 feet to the top of the great towers, 33 feet deep, 
and 30 feet wide. Four men are required to work 
the blowers. 

The building has 20 doors, all opening outward, 
and nearly all 9 feet wide, and so arranged that the 
vast building can be emptied in one and a half 
minutes. 

The Temple, in course of erection, is a marvelous 
structure, and very imposing in appearance. Its 
walls are 9 feet 9 inches thick. Its corner-stone was 
laid April 6, 1853, and the building is now about 55 
feet above the foundation. It has already cost over 
$3,000,000, and is expected to cost altogether some 
ten or twelve millions. 

After this we went to the private office of Presi- 
dent Taylor. Several clerks were busily employed, 
and a constant stream of men and women, on busi- 
ness of one kind or another, were passing in and out. 
We observed on the walls of the office several play- 
bills of different kinds, advertising the very mundane 
tastes of these dwellers in the Utah Zion. After 
waiting a little, we were ushered, by Apostle Rich- 
ards, into the presence of the President of all the 
Mormons — Apostle and President Jno. Taylor. He 
is a large man, well advanced in years, and quite im- 
posing in appearance. We announced ourselves as 
travelers in search of information, especially on reli- 
gious matters, and said we should be happy to receive 
any information he could give us. He received us 



FROM OMAHA TO THE PACIFIC. 19 

quite kindly, and at once entered into conversation 
very freely. We asked him what proportion other 
religious denominations in the city bore to that of the 
Mormons. Pie said that he did not know very well 
— that, in fact, he did not much trouble himself 
about them. He informed us that the vast Temple 
was being built out of the tithes and free-will offer- 
ings of the people, and that if the offerings were 
abundant, it would be completed in about five years; 
or it might be ten or even twenty years. He said 
they gave all denominations welcome, and that his 
principle was, that all should have full liberty to 
carry out their convictions. We asked, " How many 
preachers have you now engaged in foreign fields ? " 
He replied, " I do not exactly know, but we have a 
great many, and a great many who are ready to go 
when called upon." When asked how those preach- 
ers were sustained, he said that they went out without 
scrip or purse, and were self-sustaining, and that they 
had a large number ready to go on these terms ! 
When asked how fast they were increasing, his reply 
was, "Rapidly." We asked, "From what nation- 
ality do you receive most?" and his answer was, '■* I 
think Scandinavia, and then Great Britain — mainly 
Welsh — but very few from Ireland." They had also 
many from the nations of Northern Europe. At this 
point we thought we had occupied quite a reasonable 
amount of time, and after thanking him for his kind- 
ness in so readily answering our questions, and after 
an introduction to Joseph F. Smith, an apostle, and a 



20 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

nephew of Joseph Smith, the founder of the system, 
we withdrew. During the interview we learned from 
Mr, Taylor, that they had 77 quorums, of 70 elders 
each, and all of them ready to go and preach at the 
church's bidding. One thing, omitted in writing 
about the Great Tabernacle, is itself a noticeable 
thing. On the left-hand side of the great organ is a 
large collection of sage-brush, with small sun-flowers, 
and one small pine tree, and on a large calico strip, 
the figures 1847. This symbolizes that when the 
Mormons came to Utah, in that year, they found not a 
single blade of grass in the region ; nothing but sage- 
brush, sunflowers and pine trees. On the right-hand 
side of the organ Avere sage-brush, sunflowers and 
every variety of flowers, to indicate that they had 
made the wilderness to blossom as the rose; and 
amongst them all, in great figures, 1880. We came 
away deeply impressed with the fact, that " organiza- 
tion," thorough, systematic,, and on the best business 
plans, was at the root of all their success. We won- 
dered what grand results for Christ and the world 
would be accomplished by our brethren, if but a simi- 
lar spirit filled them, and similar common sense and 
business-like plans and methods could find a place 
among us. 

We left Utah's wonderful city at 3:30 p. m., Sept. 
22, for Ogden, where again we set our faces west- 
ward. In the cars again, we found, on entering into 
conversation, Mormons were around us, and, as usual, 
apparently most firm believers in the entire system. 



FRO 31 031 AHA TO THE PACIFIC. 21 

(If I am not mistaken, as I think of it at this mo- 
ment, this same President Taylor had a discussion at 
Boulogne-sur-mer, with some Protestant preacher, 
nearly forty years ago, and in it he denied the polyg- 
amous practices of the Mormons. I had a copy of 
that debate, and at the same time some published 
" revelations " on the subject, and in debate with a 
Salt Lake City elder in my native town, nearly thirty 
years ago, read from both, and with such effect that 
for nearly two years after no Mormon ever preached 
openly again in that town. I am reminded of this, 
as I think Mr. Taylor told us he had been in Europe. 

— Exley.) 

We reached in safety San Francisco, Thursday 
evening, Sept. 23. When, as we were seeking our 
way to the entrance to cross on the ferry, a gentle- 
man, hearing us asking the way, said: "You are 
English, are you not?" Bro. Exley replied, "Yes; 
and so are you, are you not?" "Yes." "From 
what part?" "Wakefield." Bro. Exley, grasping 
the man's hand, said, " So am I. Let me Jook at 
your face;" and after a close scrutiny, exclaimed, as 
he shook hands in a very warm fashion, and heart- 
ily laughing, "'Why! it's Joe Moore! The last time 
I saw you was in Bradford, when I held that public 
debate with David Lighthowler, one of Mr. Joseph 
Barker's friends and followers." Mr. Moore said : 
" That is thirty-two years since. I was then a skeptic 

— a socialist of the Robert Owenites. I am now a 
Methodist." 



22 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

We went to the Grand Hotel, and the first business 
attended to, was to look in the city directory, to see if 
there was a Christian Church. We found that there 
was, copied names and addresses of officers, and dis- 
patched postal cards; and next evening Bros. H. H. 
Luse and McCollough waited upon us. We asked as 
to the condition of the cause in California, and were 
rejoiced to hear that a Woman's Board of Missions 
had been formed, and that the late State Meeting was 
the best ever held in the State. In San Francisco 
city we learned that there were about seventy mem- 
bers, and that Bro. McCollough was engaged as their 
preacher. He seems confident of success. We heard 
many reasons for the backward condition of the cause 
in California, one of which was the influence of a cer- 
tain anti-mission paper; another, that some churches 
had almost been talked to death by an unhappy kind 
of "mutual teaching;" another reason was strife 
about the organ. 

A curious settling of the organ question came to 
our knowledge. It seems that, in order to bring 
about a revival of the cause in California, it was pro- 
posed to send for Knowles Shaw. This brought up 
the item that he would have good music and singing; 
when the question was asked, " What is meant by 
good music?" The reply was, " An organ." Some 
at once wished to write to Knowles Shaw not to come. 
One brother then said, " As this organ question has 
been troubling us for a long time, I now propose that 
we settle that question by buying an organ." This 



FROM 031 AHA TO THE PACIFIC. 23 

was carried, an organ bought, and that question 
"sound-ly" settled. 

On Saturday, Sept. 25, we took lunch at Bro. 
Luse's, in company with his very affable and court- 
eous lady, and Bros. McCollough and Sturgess. After 
lunch, and conversation concerning the cause of the 
Master, Bro. Exley sat at the organ, Bro. Luse played 
the violin, and we all sang — 

"1 am so glad that Jesus loves me;" 

after which we all knelt before the mercy-seat, and 
commended each other to the care of Him who made 
the sea, and the dry land also. We were then driven 
down to the vessel — the Zealandia — and in about 
two minutes after we were on board we stood clear of 
the shore, bound for New Zealand and Australia, and 
perhaps around the world. 

At this point we close, as we expect to meet a ves- 
sel and send on with it our mail. We shall probably 
write again from Honolulu — certainly from New 
Zealand, where we expect to meet with Bro. Caleb 
Wallis, son of the late lamented James Wallis, of 
Nottingham, England, a gentleman on board giving 
us his address. T. Coop, H. Exley. 



LETTER II. 

THE SANDWICH ISLANDS. 

Our last letter was put into the Purser's hands two 
days before Ave reached Honolulu, supposing it would 
be transmitted to you by the mail-steamer we were 
expecting to meet; but, as we never saw it, the letter 
would be carried on to Honolulu, and there wait 
for the next mail-steamer. Owing to our haste to 
have it ready, it was likely a very disjointed letter. 

We reached Honolulu, Sandwich Islands, on Satur- 
day evening, Oct. 2, about 9 o'clock. We remained 
there until 11:20 Lord's day morning. Taking ad- 
vantage of the time, we went on shore directly after 
breakfast, to see and learn what we could, in some 
three hours, at most, at our disposal. It was with 
real delight we stepped on shore and went into the 
city of Honolulu. Everything was so new, so strange, 
so beautiful. Some one has called the Sandwich 
Islands the " Paradise of the Pacific." There is said 
to be no local disease of any kind, or periodic sick- 
ness. The heat of summer is not oppressive, and the 
winters, if winter is at all applicable to such a coun- 
try, are never cold ! It was October When we went 
ashore at Honolulu, and the delightful warmth, the 

light, breezy air, and the strange and wonderful 
(24^ 



THE SANDWICH ISLANDS. 25 

growths of the feathered cocoanut — tall, beautiful, 
and with great numbers of the fruit hanging upon 
them — bananas, with their clusters of bananas, um- 
brella-trees, palm trees, and other tropical growths — 
made us feel we were where all the conditions of life 
are wonderfully unlike anything within the range of 
our experience before. The very waters of the sea 
surrounding these islands are an indescribable blue, 
and the "mist upon the mountains" — mountains that 
have been rocked and split and torn by earthquakes, 
or have themselves belched out rivers of lava and 
fire. — throws the charm of mystery over everything. 
We went walking along several streets in the main 
business part of the city. There are large numbers 
of Chinese, and most that we saw, and we saw many, 
seemed clean, tidy and wide-awake. We did not 
learn if they had a "Joss" house, but we saw their 
theater, and judging from a hasty outside view of it, 
it seemed to be larger than any church building in the 
city. They seemed to have a large number of shops, 
and well crowded together. The dark-skinned Hono- 
lulans seemed a very quiet, cheerful, and very bright- 
eyed people. Their eyes and teeth are unquestion- 
ably beautiful. The movements of the younger 
women are very graceful — nothing angular about 
them. They all seem to love finery in dress. Most 
of the women, no matter how well dressed otherwise, 
seemed to be without shoes and stockings. All wore 
a long, robe-like dress, and unconfined at the waist. 
One rather elderly lady, dressed in a magnificent 



26 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

crimson silk dress, attracted our notice by repeatedly 
stopping to so arrange her dress that the most of it 
could be seen, and also her spotlessly white under- 
skirt at the same time. 

When tired of walking, we hired a carriage, and 
were driven around the city by a native Honolulan — 
a city resting amidst cocoa-nuts, bananas, umbrella- 
trees, oranges, and passion-flowers. As we passed 
through the hospital grounds, we were almost horri- 
fied to find ourselves in such close proximity to 
leprosy. One man seemed to have no mouth, and the 
face of another was awful to look upon. Leprosy 
is doing a fearfully destructive work among the na- 
tives. It is called the "Chinese leprosy," but is at- 
tributable to quite other causes than climate or local 
disease or influence. 

We visited the Congregational Church, in which the 
royal family worship — a large, substantial building 
— and the Roman Catholic Church, also very large, 
and very finely decorated with paintings. They have 
evidently a firm footing among the Honolulans. We 
also visited the Episcopalian Church, also large and 
substantial. The Episcopalians — of whom some one 
has written, that they plant a mission only where 
others have been before them — have the idea that 
they are called to some great work here, which others 
can not do so well as they. In a recent report of 
their work there, they thus discourse : 

"The sumptuous Cathedral has not risen many inches 
above the ground, and the fund for its erection is at a stand- 



THE SANDWICH ISLANDS. 27 

still, if it be not exhausted. But the spiritual temple is 
growing, and the bishop, so far from being disheartened, de- 
clares that every day is opening out fresh opportunities for 
the mission — that the religion which the islanders received 
from the descendants of the pilgrim fathers, has lost its power, 
and that unless the people for whom the English Church 
twenty years ago professed so ardent a sympathy, are to fall 
a prey to emissaries from Utah, or to be drawn into the 
Church of Rome, his own hunds must be strengthened. It 
is, in one aspect, a discouraging story the bishop has to tell, 
but it is gratifying to know that the Society's aid has saved 
an interesting mission from extinction, and the mother 
church from the full weight of reproach." 

The future of religion in Honolulu may prove an 
extremely interesting study. We visited the Pacific 
Mission station, in the hope of learning any interest- 
ing particulars about missionary matters, but found 
no one there, as it appeared to be wholly abandoned 
to plasterers, etc., who were entirely rehabilitating it. 
The king's palace is a splendid building, and so is the 
block of buildings occupied by the government. We 
passed through the grounds occupied by the late 
Queen-Mother. She was to be buried the day of our 
visit. There was a very solid, broad slide, built from 
the ground up to the second story of her residence, 
down which the coffin was to be passed to the carriage 
to receive it. The weight of the coffin was said to be 
12,000 pounds. A large number of passengers signed 
a request to the captain of our ship, to remain a few 
hours longer, that we might witness the funeral. He 
was unable to gratify us, and so, after we had ex- 
hausted our time, we went on board again. For fully 



28 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

half an hoifr before sailing, we amused ourselves 
watching a number of dark-skinned Honolulan boys, 
who came swimming around the ship, and apparently 
as much at home in the sea as ducks in a pond. A 
goodly number of small pieces of silver were thrown 
into the water, with as much force as possible ; but 
long before any piec? could reach the bottom, these 
little fellows, at once plunging down, heels over head, 
had caught it, and as soon as the lucky one came to 
the surface, he opened his hand, and holding it up be- 
tween his thumb and fingers, put it into his mouth, 
and was ready for another dive. 

Salt water seems to have no influence on their eyes, 
as they dive down with them wide open, and do n't 
rub them when they come to the surface. 

Since Capt. Cook discovered these Islands, in 1778, 
very great changes have taken place. The inhabi- 
tants were then all idolaters, but not cannibals. It 
may be, however, that there have been one or two ex- 
ceptions to this. It was here Capt. Cook was mur- 
dered, and a monument has been erected to com- 
memorate the catastrophe. It was not, however, 
until 1819, that the inhabitants voluntarily threw 
away their idols, and renounced idolatry ; and not 
until 1837, or nearly forty years after, that they man- 
ifested any intense interest in the Christian religion. 
In 1835, Rev. Titus Coan, Congregational ist, entered 
upon his work in these islands, as a missionary, prior 
to which Mr. and Mrs. Lyman had for some years 
been laboring, and evidently the good seed which 



THE SANDWICH ISLANDS. 29 

they had sown, had not been lost. On the first Lord's 
day in July, 1838, 2,400 persons, all of whom had 
been idolaters, were admitted to the Lord's table; and 
assuredly it was a wonderful gathering. Amongst 
them, u the old and decrepid, the lame, the blind, the 
maimed, the withered, the paralytic, and those af- 
flicted with divers diseases and torments — some with 
their noses, lips and limbs consumed, with features 
destroyed, figures depraved and loathsome — these 
came hobbling along on their staves, or were borne 
by others, to the table of the Lord;" among them, 
the hoary priest of idolatry, with, his hands but 
recently washed from the blood of human victims, 
together with thieves, idolaters, and mothers whose 
hands had reeked with the blood of their own chil- 
dren. From 1837, to 1841 or 1842, a great religious 
wave seems to have swept over these Islands, when 
even young people ran up into the mountains to carry 
the good news of the love of God to their benighted 
friends. They spoke of the good life to come to the 
old and sick, and of the " endless life of Jesus," 
as the most joyful news they had ever heard ; as they 
said, "breaking upon them like light in the morn- 
ing." ""Will my spirit never die? and will this poor 
body live again?" exclaimed one old chieftess. Then 
there were only two preachers to 15,000 people; but 
the people were so eager to hear, that the sick and in- 
firm were brought on litters, or carried on the backs 
of men — and some even crawled on their hands and 
knees, or any way they could, to the path over which 



30 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

the missionary had to pass, that they might hear of 
the good news, and saying, "If we die, let us die. in 
the light!" 

The Islands are now Christian, and have all the 
appliances of a well ordered kingdom, whilst their 
king is a thoroughly well educated Christian gentle- 
man. As evidence of the reality of the conversion of 
these interesting people, it is stated that they have 
contributed, since their renunciation of idolatry, some 
hundreds of thousands of dollars, for missions. Mr. 
Coan'e congregation alone contributes more than 
$1,200 yearly, for the work of foreign missions, and 
twelve of its members have gone as missionaries to 
the Isles of Southern Polynesia. Mr. Coan has him- 
self admitted nearly 12,000 people into the church. 
One very impressive testimony to the saving power of 
the gospel, is given by Miss Bird, in her book on the 
Sandwich Islands. The high-priest of the crater of 
Kilauea, was considered a very awful personage.' 
This particular one was 6 feet 5 inches in hight, and 
his sister, almost as tall, was coordinate with him in 
authority. His chief business was to keep Pele,*the 
goddess of the crater, appeased. He lived on the 
shore, but often w T ent up to Kilauea with sacrifices. 
If any victim was demanded, he had only to point to 
the native, and the unfortunate victim was at once 
strangled. He was not only the embodiment of 
heathen idolatry, but of heathen crime also. Robbery 
was his pastime, and his temper was so fierce and un- 
curbed, that no native dared to even tread on his 



THE SANDWICH ISLANDS. 81 

shadow. More than once he had killed a man for the 
sake of food and clothing not worth 50 cents. He 
was a thoroughly wicked savage. Curiosity attracted 
him to one of the mission meetings, and this bad 
giant fell under the power of the gospel whose strange 
influence was transforming thousands of his country- 
men into new men. He said, " I have been deceived, 
and I have deceived others. I have lived in dark- 
ness, and did not know the true God. I worshiped 
what was no God ; I renounce it all. The true God 
has come, and I will henceforth cleave to Him, and I 
will be his son." His sister, soon after, also fell 
under the same redeeming power, and both became 
truly Christian, and became loving and gentle as little 
children, and both, at last, at more than seventy years 
of age, passed peacefully away in the faith of Jesus. 
Of other things, more in our next. 

Since writing the last letter, Bro. Exley has been 
very ill, and is now not nearly strong. Time is done, 
and this must be posted now, or a month may perhaps 
be lost. T. Coop, H. Exley. 

Auckland, New Zealand, Nov. 8, 1880. 



LETTER III. 

VOLCANOES AND ERUPTIONS. 

Our Inst letter was hurriedly finished at Papakura, 
in the house Qf Bro. Caleb Wallis, some twenty miles 
from Auckland, New Zealand. He is a right noble 
representative of his father, the late and much la- 
mented James Wallis, editor of the British Millennial 
Harbinger, England. This letter we begin in the 
home of Bro. Grey, Wellington, situated at the ex- 
treme south of the North Island, and from whence 
we to-day sail for Christ Church, on the South Is- 
land. 

It was a regret to us that our time did not allow us 
to visit the still active volcanoes of the Sandwich Is- 
lands, concerning which the most thrilling accounts 
have been written from time to • time. The crater of 
the volcano Kilauea, which has a hight of 8,000 feet, 
nearly, is said to have the appearance of a great pit 
on a rolling plain; but such a pit! It is nine miles 
in circumference. Its depth is from 800 to 1100 feet, 
according as the molten sea below is at ebb or flood. 
The Hawaiians call it the Hate-maw- maw, or House of 
everlasting fire, and in Hawaiian mythology it is the 
abode of the dreaded Goddess Pele. Here is a fiery 

sea, whose waves are never weary. Its area is six 

(32) 



VOLCANOES AND ERUPTIONS. 33 

square miles, showing signs of volcanic action over 
almost its whole extent. The movement of this vast, 
fiery sea, is nearly always from the sides to the center, 
but the movement of the center itself, appears to be 
independent, and always takes a southerly direction. 
The following description, by Miss Bird, published in 
1876, is so graphic, that for the sake of many young 
readers, who may not see her book, it will not be 
unacceptable : 

" It is the most unutterable of wonderful things. It is in- 
describable, unimaginable, a sight to remember forever — a 
sight which at once took possession of every faculty of sense 
and soul, removing one altogether out of the region of 
earthly life. Here was the real "bottomless pit," the "fire 
which is not quenched, the place of hell,* "the place of 
fire and brimstone," "everlasting burnings," the "fiery sea 
whose waves are never weary." There were groanings, 
rumblings, and detonations; rushings, hissings, and splash- 
ings, and the crashing sound of breakers on the coast; but it 
was the surging of fiery waves upon a fiery shore. Now it 
seemed furious, demoniacal, as if no po sver on earth could 
hinder it; then playful and sportive; then, for a second, 
languid, but only because it was accumulating fresh force. 
On our arrival, eleven fire-fountains were playing jov- 
ously around the lake, and sometimes six of the nearest ran 
together in the center, to go wallowing down in one vortex, 
from which they reappeared, bulging upwards till they 
formed a huge cone thirty feet high, and which plunged 
down in whirlpools, only to reappear in exactly the previous 
number of fountains in different parts of the lake, high leap- 
ing, raging and flinging themselves upwards. Sometimes 
the whole lake, abandoning its usual centripetal motion, as if 
impelled southwards, took the form of mighty waves, and 
3 



34 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

surging heavily against the partial barrier, with a sound like 
the Pacific surf, lashed, and tore, and covered it, and threw 
itself over it in floods of living fire. It was all commotion, 
confusion, force, terror, majesty, glory, mystery, and even 
beauty. And the color! Molten metal has not that crimson 
gleam, nor blood that living light. Had I not seen it, I 
should never have known that such a color was possible. 
Nearly the whole time the surgings of the lake, taking a 
southerly course, broke on the bold, craggy cliffs, with a 
tremendous noise, and throwing their gory spray to a hi&ht 
of fully 40 feet. Before we came away, a new impulse 
seemed to seize the lava. The fire was thrown to a great 
hight; the fountains and jets all wallowed together — new 
ones appeared, and danced joyfully around the margin; then 
converging toward the center, they merged into a glowing 
mass, which upheaved itself pyramidally, and disappeared 
with a mighty plunge. Then innumerable billows of fire 
clashed themselves in the air, crashing and lashing, and the 
lake, dividing itself, recoiled on either side; then hurling its 
fires together, and rising as if by upheaval from below, it 
surged over the temporary ruin it had formed, passing 
downward in a slow, majestic flow, leaving the central Fur- 
face, swaying and dashing in fruitless agony, as if sent on 
some errand it had failed to accomplish." 

A few years ago (1859) the volcano Mauna Loa 
threw up fountains of fire nearly 400 feet in hight, 
and of a nearly equal diameter. In 1868 terrors oc- 
curred which are without precedent in island history. 
Earthquakes became nearly continuous, scarcely an 
appreciable interval between them. The movements 
of the earth Avere vertical, lateral, rotary and undul- 
atory, producing nausea, vertigo and vomiting. The 
crust of the earth rose and sank like the sea in a 



VOLCANOES AND ERUPTIONS. 35 

storm. Rocks were rent, mountains fell, buildings 
and their contents were shattered, trees swayed like 
reeds, and animals were scared and ran about de- 
mented. Men thought the judgment day had come; 
Horses and their riders, and passengers on foot, were 
thrown violently to the ground. It seemed as if the 
rocky ribs of the mountains, and the granite walls 
and pillars of the earth, were broken up. From one 
of these volcanoes a pillar of fire 200 feet in diameter 
lifted itself for three weeks a thousand feet into the 
air, making night into day for a hundred miles 'round. 
From Ma una Loa, an eruption of fiery lava traveled 
in a straight line for forty miles — or sixty, including 
sinuosities; it was from one to three miles broad, and 
from five to two hundred feet deep, according to the 
contour of the mountain slopes over which it passed. 
It lasted f >r nearly thirteen months, pouring out a 
torrent of lava which covered about three hundred 
square miles of land, the contents of which were es- 
timated at 38,000,000,000 cubic feet. In 1868, in the 
eruption which then took place, rocks weighing many 
tons were thrown from 500 to 1,000 feet into the air. 
Mr. Whiting, of Honolulu, who was near the spot, 
says that "from these great fountains there flowed to 
the sea a rapid stream of red lava, rolling, rushing 
and tumbling like a swollen river, bearing in its 
course large rocks, as it dashed down the precipices 
and the valley, into the sea, surging and roaring 
throughout its whole length like a cataract, with a 
power and a fury perfectly indescribable. It was 



36 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

nothing else than a river of fire, from 200 to 800 feet 
wide, and 20 feet deep, with a speed varying from ten 
to twenty-five miles an hour." As one becomes ac- 
quainted with such stupendous facts as these, the sig- 
nificance and grandeur of the sacred question is 
realized, " Who can understand the thunder of His 
power V 1 

It was with reluctance we left these lands of mar- 
vel, of a simple, peaceful, and too rapidly diminishing 
people, and set sail again on Lord's day, Oct. 3, at 11 
A. M. Not much of special interest occurred to break 
the sameness of our voyage, for days together. A 
sail was hardly ever seen ; a lazy turtle, too far off for 
soup, and a large, black fish, of some kind, at a con- 
siderable distance, were about all the signs of life we 
met, save numbers of flying fish, of which we saw 
great numbers every day, one of them doing us the 
special favor to fly over the bulwarks, making us 
thus a flying visit. Its wings were about three- 
fourths of its whole length. 

On Lord's day, Oct. 10, we had Church of Eng- 
land service, in the morning at 10:30. In the after- 
noon, at 3 o'clock, Bro. Exley, having obtained per- 
mission of the Captain, preached in the saloon, on 
the "Divinity of Christ."* The Episcopalian clergy- 
men, of whom we had two on board, did not put in 
an appearance at the meeting. Prior to the service, 
the captain visited Bro. Exley in his state-room, and 
said to him, " Mr. Exley, whilst personally I am glad 
for you to preach, yet as these are Church of Eng- 



VOLCANOES AND ERUPTIONS. 37 

land ships, it is hoped you will not say anything 
against the Church of England." Bro. Exley only 
said, "I know they are Church of England ships; 
but I do not believe in doing such work as you seem 
to fear. I am going to preach to them Christ, and 
think they will all rejoice in what I may say." The 
captain very kindly thanked him, and withdrew. In 
the evening there was Church of England service in 
the forward part of the vessel, and only some nine 
persons present all told. It was remarked over and 
over and over again, the littleness and sectarian spirit 
manifested in these gentlemen of the apostolic succes- 
sion, and but few gave them their presence, whilst the 
discourse of Bro. Exley was the theme of general 
conversation, and evidently had done solid good. 
From this time, however, there came a serious change 
to Bro. Exley. Walking over the ice-smooth floor of 
the Palace Hotel at San Francisco, and with boots 
almost as smooth, he slipped, but did not fall, but in 
some way sprained his back in saving himself from 
falling. The sprain, though often felt, was thought to 
be of little consequence, and it was hoped that it 
would* soon pass away. After preaching, however, 
perhaps from catching a little cold, the pain increased 
in intensity until he became almost helpless, and the 
weather changing for the worse, every lurching of the 
vessel was added torture, so that night and day it was 
continual suffering for the rest of voyage to Auck- 
land, and a considerable portion of the intervening 
seven days, he was unable to walk alone. 



38 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

We crossed the equator on Thursday, the 9th of 
October. It was very amusing to stand at noon be- 
neath the sun, and look at our shadows, all cuddled 
up under our feet. On the 10th of October we 
passed the Navigator Islands, and the Sunday Islands 
on the 14th. It was exceedingly warm, and had it 
not been for the canvas awning covering the whole 
of the hurricane deck, "it would have been very un- 
comfortable. Oar ship's company was every way 
good — quite -a number of tourists — one we took to 
be a sleek Jesuit, ready to thrust the claims of his 
church before one at every opportunity, " instant in 
season and out of season/' and almost as ready to be 
quite angry and insolent when rather hard pressed. 
Once, over the dinner-table, Bro. Exley asked him, 
"Where is your home?" He blandly said, with a 
smile, and his eyes half closed, as he pointed upward, 
" Above." Bro. Exley then pleasantly said, " Well, 
yes, I would hope so; but on the road, where is your 
stopping-place?" At this he was a little taken aback, 
and looked hard, but said nothing. Bro. Coop, with 
a quiet emphasis, said, " I know I should not like to 
stop long at one place on the road?" Our Catholic 
friend saw in that a rather unpleasant reminder of his 
possible retention, for a time, in purgatory, and so ate 
the balance of his dinner in silence. 

On Thursday, at midnight, Oct. 14, we passed at 
once to Saturday, the 16th. We had no Friday. The 
doctor visiting Bro. Exley, .and a high churchman, 
was asked a rather puzzling question : "Doctor, how 



VOLCANOES AND ERUPTIONS. 39 

do you high church people manage, when crossing 
this region at the time of the year, to keep Good 
Friday?" Of course he had no answer. Our ship's 
steward was exceedingly kind, and to Bro. Exley he 
was almost as gentle as a brother. 

On Lord's day, the 17th, we reached the city of 
Auckland, at noon, where, for two or three reasons, 
we determined to land and spend a little time. Bro. 
Exley was too ill to continue the journey — then we 
wanted to know if there was a church there, and to 
see how they were doing ; and lastly, but not least, we 
wanted to see Bro. Caleb Wallis, of Papakura. We 
went on shore at 2:30 p. m., and were at once driven 
to the Star Hotel. A physician was at once sent for, 
as sought out by Bro. Coop, as Bro. Exley was un- 
able to sit up. It was found that, in addition to the 
sprain in the back, the treatment of the ship's doctor 
had entirely stripped the skin from a large portion of 
the* side. This had to be healed before anything 
could be done for the back. Bro. Coop, as usual, 
went off to see and learn all about the churches, both 
of our brethren and others, and succeeded soon in 
finding a church of our brethren. 

As this letter, however, is long enough, and not 
over interesting, all about these matters must be left 
for another letter. 

On Monday, Bro. Carr, a lumber merchant, and old 
Bro. Rattray, an old sea captain, dropped in to see 
us; the latter had, a short time before, celebrated his 
golden wedding. 



40 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

Also, there came to see us, a Mr. George A. Brown 
a Baptist minister, formerly of Lincoln, England, 
a gentleman who is preaching in the Temperance 
Hall, to large audiences, on Lord's day evenings. 
He is doing solidly good work in weakening the 
hold of sectarianism upon the people. Apart from 
his advocacy of the doctrine of the destruction of the 
wicked, he is doing precisely the work our people are 
seeking to do. It would not, at present, be wise for 
them to unite; but union may come, and will, if all 
parties are governed by the right spirit. 

On Friday, the 22nd, Bro. and sister McDermott, 
having laarned of Bro. Exley's condition, insisted we 
should move from the hotel to their house, so that he 
could have as good nursing as if he were in his own 
home. And certainly, if any proof were needed of 
the precious influence of the gospel of Jesus, Bro. 
and Sister McDermott and family are a splendid testi- 
mony. A more affectionate, well-ordered family, it 
would be hard to imagine. He himself was born in 
New Zealand, and with his father and mother has, in 
past years, been in strange perils from the Maories. 
She is from Ireland, and formerly a Boman Catho- 
lic, we understand, but is now a member of the Chris- 
tian Church, as is her mother, formerly a Catholic 
also. Their names and their home will always have a 
place of affectionate remembrance in our hearts. 

T. Coop, H. Exley. 
Wellington, New Zealand, No\ r . 30, 1880. 



LETTER IV. 

NEW ZEALAND. — FACTS AND INCIDENTS. 

As before intimated, on our arrival at Auckland, 
we found the whole city in considerable agitation, it 
being stirred up by the preaching of Mr. George A. 
Brown. He is a personal friend of Bro. J. B. 
Rotherham, and knows Bro. Delaunay, of Paris, 
quite well. The people in the colonies, for the most 
part, seem remarkably free from prejudice, so that, to 
an earnest and fearless proclaimer of the truth, there 
is much cause for encouragement. Bro. Coop soon 
found himself quite busy in the place — and several 
pleasant little things happened to him as he went up 
and down the city. He was frequently and suddenly 
accosted by some one who had either known him, or 
worked for him, or traded with him, in England. 

For five weeks we stayed at Auckland, minus some 
ten days spent at Papakura, at Bro. Wallis's hospitable 
home. During this time Bro. Coop, very much with 
the view of drawing Mr. Brown and our brethren to- 
gether, frequently broke bread with him and those 
affiliated with him. Mr. Brown's preaching is doing 
good work on the side of a purer faith, and our breth- 
ren repeatedly allowed him to use their baptistery. 

On the design of baptism he is thoroughly at one 

(41) 



42 A TRIP ABOUND THE WORLD. 

with us. Bro. Coop repeatedly assisted him on these 
occasions, baptizing for him, nine at one time, six at 
another, and some four or five at another, whilst Mr. 
Brown baptized also a still larger number. 

To none of these meetings was Bro. Exley able to 
go, being at times unable to stand more than a few 
minutes. Under the careful nursing of Sister Mc- 
Dermotfc, however, strength gradually returned, and 
whilst able to barely walk about, a few minutes at a 
time, he resolved to preach for the brethren a few 
times. This he did, twice on the Lord's day, Oct. 31, 
speaking in the morning on " The Cross, the Throne 
and the Crown;" and in the evening, on "The Great 
Question of this Age." It was pleasing to meet faces 
on this Lord's day, not seen before for seventeen 
years — Bro. and Sister Roebuck, from Camden 
Town, London, with many friends from there, and 
some from Manchester, who had heard Bro. Exley 
preach there many years ago. 

After this, we went to Bro. Wallis's, at Papakura, 
who kindly met us at the depot with his conveyance. 
Bro. Exley had seen him but once or twice before, 
when it happened he preached in Huddersfield, 
nearly thirty years ago. He had brought his little 
daughter with him, whom we knew at once, because 
of her close resemblance to Sister Black, of London, 
a sister of Bro. Wallis. Here Bro. Exley preached 
five times, on various themes; some by request, such 
as "The Witness of the Spirit," "Eternal Life," 
l< Jesus, the Son of God," and suchlike themes. The 



NEW ZEALAND. 43 

meetings were large, for a country place, and held in 
the National School-room. There is a little church 
here of somewhat over twenty members, and of a 
superior class to some, gathered mainly by the labors 
of Bro. Wallis. The family of Bro. and Sister Wal- 
lis, consisting of one son and three daughters, all 
members of the church, except the little girl, is in 
every way a model family. The Christian kind- 
ness, gentleness, wisdom and affection, which obtain 
amongst them all, we have rarely seen equalled, and 
never surpassed. Their unceasing efforts to have 
Bro. Exley built up into strength again, and to make 
us thoroughly at home, can not be overvalued. In- 
deed, had it not been for the care of Bro. and Sister 
Wallis, and family, and of Bro. and Sister McDer- 
mott, and family, it is very doubtful if Bro. Exley 
had been able for a long time to have done any work 
again, or to have continued the journey. Surely it is 
of such gentle and tender kindness as theirs, that the 
Master has said, " Inasmuch as ye did it to one of the 
least of these, my brethren, ye did it unto me;" and 
it may be that it will be of just such deeds of pure 
Christian love as these, that the " Crown of Life" 
will be woven by the Master's hand in that day, 
when it will show forth the nobleness of the life of 
the w T earer to whom it is given. 

Whilst Bro. Exley was thus by day being nursed so 
kindly, and trying to preach sometimes at night, Bro. 
Coop was busy exploring the country with Bro. Wal- 
lis, and in various ways showing himself either a real 



44 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

"sport," or a man equal to emergencies in awkward 
situations. One day he and Bro. Wallis started on 
horseback to the distant hills, and had the lucky mis- 
fortune to have his horse, after he had dismounted 
and tied it up, break loose and take to the bush, and 
he had to turn bushranger, or bushwhacker, in reality, 
as also Bro. Wallis, to go in search of their scared 
and runaway nags. It was something of a picture to 
see a man sixty-four years of age, with face excite- 
ment-flushed and eye flashing with merriment, and 
himself apparently as vigorous as a young fellow of 
thirty, enjoying the sport. At another time, going 
off with his nephew, Mr. James Coop, a drive into 
the country some twenty miles, and coming to a 
stream, they there decided to "git out" and give the 
animal a chance to drink. Having done this, the 
horse took a sudden notion to plunge forward, but 
not far enough to reach the other side, and — to their 
great amazement and discomfort — it sank in water 
and mud almost up to the neck. They had the nice 
pastime of standing up to the arm-pits in the new 
situation, trying to get it out; but having first to un- 
harness the horse, which, being done, with a plunge 
and a bound, flinging his companions right and left 
still deeper, the horse got out, after which — what a 
picture ! If they had been " gold-washing " in a clay 
pit, they might, perhaps, have looked as nice. Then 
the buggy was so well embedded in the new situation, 
that a span of horses had to be hitched on to get it 
out. Altogether, they had a fine time of it. An- 






NEW ZEALAND. 45 

other clay, Bro. Coop, with others, went out in a boat 
into the bay, a-fishing — and did what might have ex- 
cited the envy of even good old Isaac Walton, the 
prince of fisher-sportsmen. He not only out-did the 
rest of the company in the success of his " catch/' 
but, mirabile dictu, he actually caught a shark, which, 
with the aid of the rest, he succeeded in getting into 
the boat. This, however, they destroyed and flung 
overboard again, without even securing its formidable 
but beautiful teeth, as reminders of the sport. At 
night he returned home, as wet as a sailor (do sailors 
get wet in fishing?) and loaded with the day's spoils. 
We had now been in and about Auckland for about 
four weeks, Bro. Exley getting stronger all the time, 
and by way of exercise, not being able to walk much 
or ride much, determined to try and make amends by 
preaching as often as he could. The doctor shook his 
head, but " better rub than rust" was the motto, and 
so, altogether, he preached at Papakura, five dis- 
courses, and at Auckland, eleven, on as many themes. 
One Lord's day evening, in the hope of cultivating a 
fraternal ^intercourse between our brethren and Mr. 
Brown and those with him, Bro. Exley preached in 
Temperance Hall, instead of Mr. Brown, on " The 
Nobleness of Serving Christ." There was a very 
large attendance. The sects are hard on Mr. Brown, 
a sure sign that, whether he is right or wrong, they 
are being greatly disturbed by his preaching. On the 
last Lord's day in Auckland, Bro. Exley spoke in the 
morning on " Precious Promises," and in the even- 



46 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

ing on the " Ascension of Christ." At the close, 
some ten young persons, from 13 to 17 years of age, 
came forward and confessed the Saviour's name. On 
Monday evening, he preached again on " The Three 
Gracious Commands," and immediately after bap- 
tized twelve persons. After dismissing the meeting, 
but before the congregation had begun to disperse, a 
lady came forward, and in earnest tones said she was 
thoroughly convinced of" the truth, and desired to 
yield obedience to the Saviour. Her confession was 
most earnest, as well as clear, and a second time Bro. 
Exley " went down into the water." No sooner had 
he baptized this lady, and " come up out of the 
water," than a third time he had again to go into the 
bath, to baptize two others, thus baptizing fifteen per- 
sons that evening. Could we have remained a week 
or two longer, no doubt a greater work could have 
been done, as great seriousness appeared to rest upon 
the people, evidently a work of grace. But we could 
not stay. Our visit to the beautiful city of Auck- 
land will not be soon forgotten by us, or by the 
brethren. The memories of some of them will hence- 
forth be a part of our lives, and a very precious part 
indeed. The church at Auckland numbers about 140 
members now, has four elders and three deacons, 
with a Sunday-school of about sixty scholars. Prior 
to our visit, the church had, in six years, had some 
ninety-two additions, but none under sixteen years of 
a«;e. Bro. Coop, whenever he had opportunity, plead- 
ed for the little ones, and, we hope, with good effect. 



NEW ZEALAND. 47 

On Tuesday, the 23d of November, we bade fare- 
well to Auckland, accompanied on the cars as far as 
Onehunga, by Bro. and Sister McDermott, and Sisters 
darr and Stokes. Our vessel was soon under way, 
and faces known to us but for a few weeks, faded 
from our sight, but not to fade from memory in this 
life any more. The church at Auckland has no evan^ 
gelist, and under such circumstances has done exceed- 
ingly well. The Lord make the church there a 
mighty power for good ! Our vessel, the Haivea, was 
about 800 tons, and not being very large, although a 
first-rate vessel, she answered well to the motion of 
the waves, and severe sea-sickness was the lot of 
many of our passengers. 

There is one pleasing feature among the colonists, 
which is too much lacking in the United States: they 
preserve, to a very large extent, the Maorie names. 
Hardly a place in the country, except the large sea- 
coast cities, but what bears a Maorie name. So with 
the ships. One of the two we have sailed in since 
reaching Auckland, is named the " Hawea," and the 
other the "Rotomahana." On our arrival at Auck- 
land, Bro. Coop busied himself in learning the reli- 
gious status of different societies; finding himself in 
company with an Episcopalian clergyman, who was 
attending Convocation in the city, ascertained that 
the Episcopalians have no less than fifteen ordained 
Maories as clergymen. Yet we hear that the religion 
of the cross does not make much headway amongst 
the natives. Various reasons are assumed for this. 



48 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

Some say, it is because the missionaries, for the most 
part, have managed to get hold of the best portion of 
their lands; others, that they have become possessed 
of a large portion of wealth, from the sale of their 
lands, and as a consequence have become enervated 
by it, averse to Christianity, and by their deteriorated 
habits are rapidly dwindling away. It is a great 
misfortune to them, and pity. They are a splendid 
race of people. All that we saw were, for the most 
part, finely proportioned, well dressed, and apparently 
very intelligent, both men and women. The married 
women are tattooed on the mouth, both upper and 
lower lips. Tattooing is, however, said to be aban- 
doned now. Bro. Coop also made the acquaintance 
of the Baptist ministers, Webb and Jones. They 
have one good, strong church in Auckland, and two 
smaller, or branch-churches. They also have three 
Sunday-schools, and they are so careful in the train- 
ing of their Sunday-school scholars, that they have 
baptized a large number of them, and have now a 
large class of from fourteen to sixteen years of age, 
under instruction, with a view to baptism. They 
have some baptized as young as nine years of age. 
All this is grand, and we write it here for brethren 
to see it, and learn a lesson or two from it, if pos- 
sible. We learned that the chief Maorie, who had 
embraced Christianity from some influence or another, 
had been led to imagine himself a divinely commis- 
sioned leader, and to him large numbers of Maories 
look for instruction. He is exceedingly well versed 



NEW ZEALAND. 49 

in the scriptures, but has, no doubt, embraced some 
kind of spiritualism. All this makes it difficult to 
. spread a purer faith amongst them. 

Before leaving Auckland, we had a long drive up a 
winding pathway, to the top of Mount Eden, an ex- 
tinct volcano. Bro. and Sister McDermott, and Bro. 
Coop, with his nephew, all made the ascent. It com- 
mands a very wide area of land and sea, in its range 
of vision. The cup, or hollow of the crater, is still 
in perfect form. It is, perhaps, one-sixth of a mile 
across. It is a singular fact that stones thrown, by 
strong men, and with slings to help give force, 
seem to fall at but a short distance from the men 
flinging them. One of our company tried to throw 
a stone, but without a sling, and it seemed to be 
drawn down into the crater, at a short distance. 

The entire region is of volcanic origin, and the 
lava is still visible in places, over the whole distance 
to the sea. 

Leaving Auckland, we found the whole coast-line 
of the country, with hardly the semblance of a break, 
one continuous line of bold, lofty and very precipi- 
tous mountains. This is the unbroken characteristic 
of both North and South Islands, and all round about 
them. 

We passed New Plymouth, but did not go on 

shore, as that could only be done by going in a small 

boat, and through a very high and heavy surf. At 

Nelson, however, we went on shore for a few hours, 

and had a ride around. 
4 



50 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

The cities of New Zealand are exceedingly beauti- 
ful — better laid out, perhaps, than any city west of 
the Mississippi. Roads, side-paths, are built after 
the solid fashion in England. Schools are many, and 
built in the finest taste; and everything indicates a 
people fully abreast with the best countries in the 
world, whilst the mildness of the climate — ice being 
in most places utterly unknown, and the summers 
never excessively hot — and the wonderful cleanliness 
of everything and everybody, make these islands 
one of the most desirable homes on earth. We tried 
to find brethren at Nelson, but did not succeed; but, 
instead, we found that the Plymouth Brethren had a 
footing there, divided into " fast " and " loose " breth- 
ren. Amongst a number of tracts, kindly given us, 
quite characteristic of the teaching of these good 
people, was one with the curious title, "The First- 
ling of an Ass." Surely, neither Moses nor Job 
ever dreamed they would be thus honored, by having 
their language used as proof that all men are asses! 
Is there any truth in "evolution"? The writer im- 
pressively says, " It is far easier to acknowledge that 
we have acted like asses, than to acknowledge that we 
are such." With this Nelsonian piece of Plymouth 
Brethrenism, we left the city, speculating whether Ave 
were not also as Ephraim, " cakes unturned w — in 
fact, baked a little too much on one side. 

On Tuesday, the 27th, we landed at the port and 
city of Wellington, where we were met by Bro. T. H. 
Bates, evangelist, and several others, who had been 



NEW ZEALAND. 51 

warned by telegram from Auckland, of our intended 
visit. Wellington is built on hills, and is a splendid 
city. The church here numbers about ninety mem- 
bers; of these only some nineteen were there when 
Bro. Maston settled among them, last February. He 
has done well. Bro. Bates was there on an exchange 
with Bro. Maston, who was at Christ Church in his 
place. 

We were most kindly entertained by good Bro. and 
Sister Gray. He is one of the elders of the church. 
Bro. Coop addressed the church on Lord's day morn- 
ing, on the "Church's Duty to the Young." The 
material of this church seems to be good. At night, 
Bro. Exley, in the same hall, addressed a crowded au- 
dience, on " God's Method of Salvation." The at- 
tention was intensely earnest, from the first sentence 
to the last. Two persons — a lady and a gentleman 
— came forward, and desired to consecrate all to Him 
who had died for them. Bro. Bates had baptized six 
the evening before our arrival. They have prayer- 
meeting and Bible-class, but no Sunday-school, not 
having yet the proper facilities. The church is in 
good order, with additions constantly, under the 
earnest labors of Bro. Maston, who has not only a 
fine field here, but a place in the hearts of the 
brethren. 

Leaving Wellington on Monday, the 29th, we 
sailed in the Rotomahana, for Christ Church. Never 
have we seen such great, swelling waves, and billows 
of such immense sweep, but in mid- Atlantic, as met 



52 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

us on emerging from the harbor and bay of Welling- 
ton. Our vessel, though large and of good beam, 
literally groaned and plunged as we bravely breasted 
them. Bro. Bates and wife accompanied us, as they 
were leaving for Christ Church, that Bro. Mast-on 
might return to his own field of labor. We arrived 
at the port and city of Lyttleton next morning, and 
were also met here by a number of brethren already 
assembled to meet us and give Bro. and Sister Bates 
welcome home. The city of Christ Church is some 
six miles from Lyttleton, to reach which we have to 
go by rail, passing under the immense hills by tun- 
nel. "The rocks for the conies/' but at Lyttleton 
they are taken possession of by men. The church at 
Christ Church numbers about 120, about two-thirds 
of whom have been brought into the fold bv the 
labors of Bro. Bates. He is about to leave here for 
Melbourne; the church will then be without help, 
and the consequences can not be good. They have a 
Sunday-school of about thirty scholars. 

On Wednesday evening, the church had a tea- 
meeting in the Odd Fellows' Hall, and, although it 
was a wet evening, about 280 persons sat down to 
tea. Afterward came singing, by a number of the 
trained members of the church, and speeches by 
Brethren Bates, Maston, Coop and Exley were made, 
the latter of whom closed by singing them a song, 

'The good we may do," 
to the great delight of all. A large number bade us 



NEW ZEALAND. 53 

good-bye, and many, as Bro. Bates is likely to leave, 
expressed a strong desire for Bro. Exley to come and 
labor amongst them, as also was the case at Auckland 
and Papakura. 

On Thursday, the 2nd of December, we bade adieu 
also to Christ Church. The city stands on an im- 
mense level plain, perhaps the finest farming region 
in New Zealand, and the whole region was given 
many years ago, by the government, to the Episco- 
palians, as was the region to the Presbyterians on 
•which Dunedin stands. Then the plain was a swamp, 
but they have drained it, and it is now a garden, if 
there is one anywhere. The Episcopalians are now 
erecting a very large cathedral, the tower of which is 
already more than ninety feet high. Here Bro. Ex- 
ley met with Bro. Peter Duncan, a brother who came 
to the acknowledgment of the truth some seventeen 
years ago, under his preaching at Long Grove, Iowa. 
This was one of the happiest little episodes of our 
journey. He is a substantial farmer at Okuku (pro- 
nounced Okookoo), some thirty miles from Christ 
Church. He assured us that, on good land in this 
region, it was a common thing to raise sixty bushels 
of wheat per acre, and from ten to twenty tons of 
potatoes — the wheat selling at four English shillings 
(ninety-six cents) per bushel. He told us that he 
realized thirteen pounds, or more than sixty dollars, 
per acre, for all his potatoes, the last season. On 
poorer lands the average of wheat is about twenty- 
two to twenty-five bushels per acre, and of potatoes, 



54 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

about eight tons. With facts like these, New Zealand 
will not be easily undersold in England by our West- 
ern producers. 

The mail leaves this evening, and we close this, 
only saying that, leaving Christ Church yesterday, by 
our former boat, the " Hawea," after a very stormy 
passage^ of some twenty hours, we are now safely 
domiciled with Sister Stewart, at Dunedin. We are 
both moderately well, and as Bro. M. Green, the 
preacher here, is on a visit to the Melbourne Exhibi- 
tion, we are both given to understand we must do his 
work on next Lord's day. T. Coop, H. Exley. 



LETTER Y. 

NEW ZEALAND. — CITIES AND CHURCHES. 

As you see from date and place, we are actually in 
far-off Australia. Hitherto the Lord has brought us 
in safety. After we left Christ Church, in New Zea- 
land, Bro. Coop spent about one full week in Dun- 
edin, aud Bro. Exley about two. We were kindly 
and most hospitably entertained during our whole 
stay, at the house of Captain Stewart, one of the 
brethren, but who is now on a visit to his native Scot- 
land, and also to England. He has the reputation of 
being a genuine disciple. His good lady, Sister Stew- 
art, and family of four daughters and three sons, did 
all they could to make us at home and happy, and 
they succeeded well. Long will the memory of their 
loving kindness remain with us, as one of the most 
precious of all our acquisitions in New Zealand. 
There are two churches in Dunedin; one of about 450 
members, the preacher for which church is Bro. Mat- 
thew W. Green, who appears to have done a good 
work there, and whose noble efforts against the deadly 
and destructive influence of " Spiritism " have se- 
cured him the esteem and good will of not a few in 
Dunedin. The second church numbers about sixty 

members, and very choice spirits, t@o, we gathered, 

(55) 



56 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

many of them are. They have at present no preach- 
er, but, after hearing Bro. Exley preach some six or 
seven times in the " Tabernacle," in place of Bro. 
Green, who was on a trip to Australia, mainly for his 
health, the church meeting in the " Temperance 
Hall" sent him an official invitation and offer, ex- 
ceedingly liberal and gratifying in themselves, and 
which, had circumstances favored, Bro. Exley would 
have accepted. He, however, left the matter open, 
so that, provided he could see his way clear to accept 
the invitation, after receiving expected letters from 
home, he might do so, if it could have the free, 
full and glad sanction of the church in the " Taber- 
nacle." 

The church at Christ Church, also sent him, the 
same day that the above offer was made, a telegram, 
inviting him to labor there, accompanied by a very 
substantial offer of support, indeed. This, also, for 
reasons somewhat similar, and somewhat dissimilar, 
to the above, Bro. Exley could not at present see his 
way to accept. 

We have seen now goodly numbers of brethren at 
Auckland, Papakura, Wellington, Christ Church and 
Dunedin, and, taking all in all, the cause of a pure 
Christianity, apart from human imperfection, has 
made wonderful strides in these far-off colonies of the 
" home country," as the colonists seem affectionately, 
as well as proudly, to speak of the land of their birth. 
The brethren everywhere embrace a fair proportion 
of the intelligence and prosperity of their several 



NEW ZEALAND. 57 

communities, and in real piety will compare, all of 
them, with the very best specimens in the States. In 
some most vitally important matters connected with 
the prosperity of the churches, and the happiness and 
usefulness of preachers, the best churches in the 
United States are at a long and a very halting pace 
behind them. There is, we believe, no such thing as 
a "subscription" list, as to how much this one owes 
or that one will give. The brethren, being satisfied 
with their choice of a preacher, offer him a really 
substantial support, and pay it — pay it all, and pay 
it at the stipulated time. Everything is done in 
the solid English fashion, and we believe that the 
churches, as a rule, w T ill partake of this characteristic. 
Now, would it not, in this age of Pan-Methodist, 
Pan -Presbyterian, and other " Pan " gatherings, be 
in order if the flag of a Van- Christian Council should 
be unfurled, and every mail-clad warrior of the good 
cause, who may just now be tilting with lance, broken 
or otherwise, with his brethren, concerning the organ, 
open communion, or other real or supposed depart- 
ures from the faith once delivered to the saints — if 
each one would put his lance at rest on all these mat- 
ters just now, and let there be a gathering of as many 
as possible of the best and ablest, and most Christ- 
loving, with the selection, and prayers, and benedic- 
tions, and support of all the churches in the round 
world, to consider — What is our mission? What are 
our hindrances? What are the best means we can 
employ to remove them? What are the best meas- 



58 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

ures we can adopt to further the cause of an un- 
adulterated gospel, and to win the churches to a 
deeper piety, a more genuine union, and the various 
religious bodies around us, to a calm and dispassion- 
ate and earnest consideration of our attempted mis- 
sion, and thus largely help to convert the world to 
Christ? Great Britain, the United States, the Can- 
adas, and these far-off colonies, as well as our thinly 
scattered missions, could each furnish their quota of 
good brethren, and all could be sustained for the time 
being, from a common fund. 

Once two ships-of-war met together in the dark- 
ness of the night, and in accordance with their real 
nature, poured shot and shell into each other, until 
the decks of both vessels were strewn with the fright- 
ful wrecks of the dead and dying. When the morn- 
ing light fell upon the scene, the Union Jack was 
seen floating over each of the vessels ! They had 
mistaken each other for enemies in the dark ! 

When Nelson was once about to lead his line* of 
battle-ships into action, knowing that two of his 
greatest commodores were at almost deadly enmity 
with each other, he sent for Lords Rotherham and 
Collingwood to come to his own flag-ship, and then 
said to them, as he pointed in the direction of the 
formidable French fleet, at Trafalgar : " Shake hands ; 
and be friends. The enemy is yonder!" 

Is there not a possibility — aye, probability — that 
brethren, and even churches, may be blundering, by 
mistaking each other for enemies in the dark? 



NEW ZEALAND. 59 

Let His banner be unfurled, 

Banner of the Peaceful One; 
Wave it grandly o'er the world 

Till all strife shall be unknown. 

Can we not differently try to make them into 
friends? Can we not find the enemy outside of our 
own ranks? God help us to do so; and then, with 
united front and united purpose, move on an un- 
shaken host, to the help of the Lord against the 
mighty, and with the Almighty himself as our com- 
mander. 

On some eight or more occasions, Bro. Exley 
preached to the church and congregation in the 
Tabernacle at Dunedin. The last Lord's day even- 
ing he preached, although it was an exceedingly wet 
night, the great building, which will seat about 800 
persons, was well filled. The local press next day 
spoke of it as being crowded. He preached on " Be- 
ginning at Jerusalem/' and, perhaps, hardly ever 
had preacher a more profoundly and apparently in- 
tensely interested audience. From first sentence to 
last, everv soul seemed to listen as if fearful of losing; 
a word. 

Bro. Coop, on one Lord's day morning, as at Wel- 
lington and Auckland, gave a very earnest and ten- 
derly affectionate address, urging the church to care 
with all its best solicitude for the children, and to 
cultivate the spirit of missions, and no small good 
would surely result. 

We believe the general feeling in these colonies of 



60 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

New Zealand is that of a thankful gladness for our 
visit. 

Bro. Coop left Dunedin for Melbourne, one week 
before Bro. Exley, being anxious to receive any 
letters waiting there for him from home. He had an 
exceedingly rough and unpleasant voyage. On the 
16th of December, Bro. Exley also left, embarking 
on the Te Anau (all the vessels bear Maorie names, 
Bro. Coop sailing in the Arawata), and had also an 
exceedingly rough passage, with complete prostration 
almost the whole time between the two ports. 

South Pacific is a vast misnomer, as we found to 
our cost. To pay tax to old Neptune under such 
circumstances, was quite equal to making bricks with- 
out straw; and poor Christian in the dungeon of 
Giant Despair, hardly suffered a more cruel usage 
than we did. Still, now and then, some little inci- 
dent crops up to spread wrinkles all over the face, 
and create quite a diversion. On the last morning 
before reaching Melbourne, Bro. Exley, having risen 
early, to take a sea-bath, picked up a sixpence from 
the floor of his state-room, in which were domiciled 
two young men also, both of the novel -reading class. 
Having ascertained that he had not himself lost it, 
and to find out which of the two had, he quietly said, 
"Have either of you lost anything? Have you lost 
a sixpence with a small hole in it?" One of them 
eagerly responded, " Yes, I have." "Well," said Bro. 
Exley, "I have found a sixpence this morning on the 
carpet, and it had not a small hole in it, at all." The 



NEW ZEALAND. 61 

blank look which for a moment followed, and then 
the bursting laughter, did a good deal towards recti- 
fying the troubles of our poor and long-suffering and 
rudely-tortured stomachs. Apo-morphia had, on this 
six days' trip, fair play — and its influence was nil. 

The cities of New Zealand really astonished us; 
they are, indeed, marvelous affairs. We bad the 
notion that everything " go-ahead " was about an ex- 
clusively American commodity. What a mistake! 
Looking at the far-off state of these islands, and at 
the naturally formidable difficulties in the exceedingly 
hilly — even mountainous — condition of the sites 
where each city has been built, it is doubtful to us if 
anything more genuinely enterprising was ever done 
in any State of the Union. Lofty hills have been 
literally brought down, and valleys exalted, and 
streets and roads laid out, and so wide and so well 
macadamized, and side-paths so broad, clean and 
substantial, and the streets so solid and level and 
smooth, that the very best portions of the very best 
American cities can not carry off the palm. The 
buildings are wonderful in their taste and dimen- 
sions; the public libraries and reading-rooms, the 
public museums and educational institutions, are not 
surpassed by anything, if even equalled, in America. 
The colonists are proud of their beautiful cities and 
public institutions of all kinds, and they have abun- 
dant reason. Everything is solid. No such sign can 
be found as, " Five dollars fine to drive over this 
bridge faster than a walk!" There is an absence of 



62 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

that " rush n which characterizes our American life, 
and in its place there is visible a quieter expenditure 
of the energies of life, and a wiser appropriation of 
what belongs to the best of earth's joys — the joys 
and comforts of " home, sweet home." All business 
places of importance close early in the evening, and 
the average hours of all classes of workmen are eight 
hours per day. Loafers are neither found on street 
corners nor lounging in stores, even in country places, 
as with American little country towns ; nor are busi- 
ness men ever seen lolling outside their stores, balan- 
cing themselves on half chairs. Business at present 
is quite depressed, but improving. Gold is being 
found in very remunerative quantities. Bro. T. His- 
lop, goldsmith, Dunedin, showed us a large mass, ob- 
tained by crushing the rocks in which it was found, 
weighing, if we remember aright, more than 344 
ounces. Farmers work only eight honrs a day, like 
the rest of the community, and they can afford to do 
so better than the farmers of the West can afford to 
be content with ten hours. Of many kinds of pro- 
duce they easily raise two crops in the year. 

Bro. P. Duncan assured us that on good soil it is 
common to raise as much as sixty bushels of wheat to 
the acre, and of oats in proportion. On inferior lands, 
from twenty-two to twenty-six bushels of wheat, is a 
fair average. And though the market — England — 
is so much further off than for the Western farmer, 
really, it is practically very much nearer, from the 
fact that freights do not swallow half the value of the 



NEW ZEALAND. 63 

crop, as in the West. The farmer seldom "realizes less 
than one dollar per bushel for his wheat, raises a 
much larger quantity, at a less cost, and is every way 
less burdened with heavy toil or severe alternations in 
the weather, has but little hay to cut for his stock, 
and but little more labor in winter to take care of it 
than in summer. We were kindly taken by Bros. 
Henderson, Lawrenson, Hislop and Battson, a drive 
of some twelve miles, to see the Cooperative Woolen 
Mills. It was a grand treat. Its gentlemanly man- 
agers conducted us all over, and better cloths are not 
made in the world. The best mutton is sold at the 
meat markets at four cents a pound, and beef, the best 
cuts, at six cents ! The finest bread is ticketed up at 
ten cents for the four pound loaf! Tweed cloths, not 
to be excelled by the best makers in England, Scot- 
land, or the States, are sold at about one and a half 
dollars per yard. 

Dunedin is about twenty years old, but its streets, 
its stores, public buildings, churches, educational 
buildings, are simply grand. We saw certainly one 
little thing, but quite a set-off in its way, in a con- 
trary direction. We were out visiting various places 
of interest, when we stumbled upon, perhaps, the 
smallest meeting-house we ever saw. Curiosity led 
us to a closer inspection. It was about twenty feet 
by eleven, and on the notice-board we read and 
re-read the important information, "Strict Baptist !" 
So "strict" indeed, that the whole thing was re- 
stricted to about the above dimensions. 



64 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

We wandered into the public Museum, free to the 
public, and were astonished to find many of the finest 
fossil specimens of the largest of the extinct races of 
creatures of both land and sea. Bro. T. Hislop has 
just erected in the Town Hall, itself both very exten- 
sive, and splendid in architecture, what is termed the 
largest clock in this hemisphere. He kindly ascended 
with us into the lofty clock tower, and showed us the 
machinery of this great time-keeper, and let us see, as 
well as hear, its beautiful chimes. It will bear his 
name to a very late posterity, should accident not 
befall the building. 

It is difficult to describe Dunedin. Its business 
names are mainly Scotch and English. Its situa- 
tion is beautiful beyond our power to describe it. 
Whether seen from the land side, or from the bay, it 
is a picture of loveliness. One of its local editors, 
so enamored with it, thus speaks of it, and he is an 
Irishman : 

A fairy, 'round whose brilliant throne 

Great towering giants stand, 
As if impatient to obey 

The dictates of her wand. 
Their helmets hidden in the clouds, 

Their sandals in the spray; 
Go picture this, and then you have 

Dunedin from the Bay. 

never till this breast grows cold 

Can I forget that hour, 
As standing on the vessel's deck, 

I watched the golden shower 




THE 0CTA30N, DUKEDIN. 







.:::. from t:-:z ::. e. valley. 



NEW ZEALAND. 65 

Of yellow beams that darted 

From the sinking king of day, 
And bathed in a mellow flood 

Dunedin from the Bay. 

Dunedin has three daily papers, issued morning 
and evening, and three weekly papers — and all 
edited with signal ability. We left it regretfully, 
but very glad, indeed, that we had seen it, and es- 
pecially that we had found so many there loyal to the 
Saviour, and occupying so commanding a position. 

Bro. Green, the preacher at the Tabernacle, was 
formerly of Manchester, England, where he and Bro. 
Coop were well known to each other. 

We close this, promising but one more letter about 
New Zealand, and then something of what we may 
see in Australia. T. Coop, H. Exley. 



LETTEE VI. 

NEW ZEALAND. THE MAOEIES. 

When we last wrote you of our whereabouts, we 
had just reached this far-off land of Australia ; but 
before we say anything about Australia, it may prove 
interesting to many to add a few items more concern- 
ing New Zealand. Our deep conviction is, that as a 
country for those seeking new homes, it has advan- 
tages of a very superior character. The climate can 
not be equalled in any portion of the United States ; 
while the prices obtained for many kinds of produce, 
so far, show that, though England as a market is 
much further off than the Western States of America, 
yet owing to the high rates of freight levied by the 
railway companies, practically the Western States are 
a long way further off from England than are these 
islands called New Zealand. There is an energy, a 
business capacity, an enterprise, which does every- 
thing in the most solid and enduring form, and, at the 
same time, such a determination that business cares 
and toils shall not usurp an undue overshadowing of 
the higher ends of life ; that, perhaps, no business 
communities in the world have shorter hours of 
labor, take a larger number of holidays, or enjoy 
the brighter side of life better than they do here in 



NEW ZEALAND. 67 

New Zealand and the colonies generally. Their edu- 
cational institutions, by-and-bye, will have no su- 
periors in the world; and even now their common 
school buildings can not be surpassed for extent, 
architectural finish and solid character. There is noth- 
ing superior, even in America, to that which here is 
the rule. Their church buildings are not surpassed, 
nor even nearly approached, except in rare cases, in 
any of the cities known to us in America. The peo- 
ple are not simply religious, but pious, where religion 
is professed. England is reproduced all over the 
colonies, but with improvements. We have scarcely 
seen an American-looking face since reaching these 
far-off lands, and it may be that the influences of 
climate, soil, and general habits of life, will finally 
issue in a different type from either the American or 
the now everywhere prevailing English type. But 
the character will be always English. 

Everywhere we heard the Maories spoken of as a 
very superior race indeed, and a universally expressed 
regret that they are so rapidly dwindling away. Their 
specimens of carving and house-building are evidence 
of great capacity, and those of them who have em- 
braced the new order of things, and entered upon the 
path of Anglo-Saxon civilization, are reported to be 
exceedingly shrewd and capable as business men. In 
their savage condition, until recently, they were ex- 
ceptionally cruel, all of them cannibals, and with a 
refinement of «ruelty scarcely known to even the 
most ferocious of the red men of the West. Capt. 



68 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

Cook did almost as much, if not more, than has been 
done by civilization, to extinguish cannibalism, by 
putting on all the islands a number of pigs. These 
so rapidly multiplied, that the Maorie found it easier 
and safer to hunt and spear a few pigs, than to go to 
war for the sake of feeding on human flesh. The 
descendants of those first put on the island by Capt. 
Cook are still found running wild. Bro. Caleb Wallis 
caught one of these some little time ago, and when 
subjected to more domestic conditions it became a 
very fine porker. The darkness, superstition and 
dreadful cruelty, which through unknown time have 
reigned in all these Southern lands, fill the mind with 
thoughts and feelings which perplex and confound. 
Perhaps one of the most baleful hindrances to the 
disenthrallment of the Maories from pure barbarism, 
is the superstition which rules over them. Large 
numbers of them are almost moved any way by one 
of their prophets named Te-Whiti. Quite lately he 
delivered to them a most remarkable speech, which, 
for a savage, is really a great effort. But if he had 
studied in the school of the darkest Calvinism, with- 
out any of its light, he could not have been more dis- 
tinctly fatalistic. He strongly insisted that God from 
the beginning predestinated every thing to come to 
pass, that has ever, or ever will, come to pass ; and to 
him they give heed. He told a large assembly of the 
Maories that, whilst through himself God had made 
it known that there was to be no more fighting be- 
tween the Maories and the Colonists, yet neither 



NEW ZEALAND. 69 

was there to be any mingling of the races, but that 
each race must keep apart. A Colonist who was 
present and heard his speech, and sought to reply to 
Te-\Vhiti, was at once prevented, by Te-Whiti bid- 
ding the people to go home, when they at once dis- 
persed. The most formidable obstacles in the way of 
Maorie advancement lie in their social life. Their 
communistic habits take away all stimulus to indi- 
vidual exertion and effort. Such of the ponanga, or 
lower class, as work for Europeans, have no incentive 
to save their earnings ; for if not spent upon them- 
selves in meeting their own individual wants, they 
are sure to be expended in one way or another on the 
do-nothings of Maorie society. Occasionally one 
more enterprising than the rest is found, who at- 
tempts to acquire a little property for himself, but 
finding himself "too heavily weighted," as one writer 
very aptly terms it, drops back into the old state 
again, a believer in kai matatai (food from the sea), 
and the doles from the Native Land Courts. If one 
should happen to accumulate property in the shape of 
cattle, he is dragged down by those who only culti- 
vate enough to keep them from starvation, having to 
conform to Maorie customs, which is still regarded as 
a paramount duty. Quite recently, at a potato plant- 
ing, at a few hours' notice, in the very midst of the 
season, all the able-bodied men left for a distant 
settlement, to take part in proceedings consequent 
on a witchcraft case. A few days afterward, a death 
occurring at another settlement, the remaining part 



70 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

of the population left to take part in Maorie customs 
over the dead ; and thus the best part of the season 
was wasted. Things such as these are the real draw- 
backs to Maorie civilization. It is quite refresh- 
ing to hear all classes of the Colonists express a 
genuine regret that this fine race of people are so 
slowly emancipated from barbarism, and so rapidly 
dwindling away. There appears to be one serious 
mistake made by the Colonists in their efforts to 
civilize them, and it is this. The Maories present 
the peculiar spectacle, that whilst nearly all of them 
are able to read and write, and are eager to get 
knowledge, they yet have hardly any literature except 
religious. This can not result in the best outcome. 
Fanaticism is often the result amongst even white 
people who ignore all literature save that which is re- 
ligious. It seems as if their prophet, Te-Whiti, was 
largely thus influenced, becoming more fanatical from 
the mixing up of old superstitions with ideas de- 
rived from the scriptures. Many of them are eager 
for knowledge, and one instance is related of a num- 
ber subscribing together for the Illustrated London 
News, and though unable to speak English, have it 
read and translated to them by one who can. There 
is much hope for the young, but the old will pass 
away only half redeemed by civilization. We had it 
related to us, that when a body of Maories, some 800 
in number, were undergoing their drill tactics, the 
quickest eye could not detect the slightest failure — 
all of them crouching as if sitting on a very low sup- 



NEW ZEALAND. 71 

port, but in reality not sitting at all, and at the given 
signal presenting the white palms of their hands first 
in one direction and then in another, and this with 
wonderful rapidity and un marred precision, and then 
suddenly presenting the full open palms of both 
hands, first one way and then the other, but so sud- 
denly that it had almost the appearance of a flash of 
lightning. After this, and with the same astonishing 
precision as if the whole 800 were but one man, they 
leaped up straight and high into the air, and alighted 
again on the ground, with such perfect exactness in 
time, that the very ground vibrated for a long dis- 
tance. When rowing their canoes, we wenj told that 
the head is thrown back till it nearly touches the 
spine, and forward till it falls on the breast, and with 
a rapidity of action that is a wonder to Europeans. 

When the Islands were discovered by Capt. Cook, 
and until as late as but a few years ago, their canni- 
balism and cruelty were of the most dreadful char- 
acter. Not many years ago, and near to Auhenega, 
from whence we embarked when leaving Auckland, 
as a party of Maories and one or two Englishmen 
were pushing their way, six of the Maories went on 
first, as scouts, being at war with some other tribe; 
by and by a slave boy, belonging to the white men, 
came running into camp, and saying that these six 
had met with a woman, and had killed and eaten her! 
Another party found a girl hidden under some mats, 
when they dragged the poor girl out and killed her. 
One of them cut off a leg, and took it at once to his 



72 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

slaves to put in the oven and cook for him, using it 
on the road as a walking-stick, holding the foot in 
his hand. At the same time a man was fallen in with 
by others, who was immediately killed and prepared 
for the oven. Hearing this, the white men went to 
the spot indicated, and found them cutting out the 
bones of the dead man's knee. When asked why 
they did that, they replied that the small bone (knee- 
cap) would make a first-rate pipe-bowl, and the shin- 
bone a flute ! The hands they often fastened against 
the walls of their houses, and the fingers so bent as 
to hold fishing tackle or any other thing. In their 
camp they had a white girl, with red hair. On the 
white men's return from the scene just related, they 
found the head of the girl in among the ferns ; and at 
the same time a Maorie came into camp carrying the 
headless body of a woman on his back, with the arms 
around his neck, and which he at once put into an 
oven that happened to be preparing, and a slave, 
using a wisp of straw, as the cooking proceeded, 
rubbed off the dark skin, leaving underneath a flesh 
as white as a European's. 

Captives taken 'in war were often tortured, and for 
this purpose were handed over to the women, who, in 
war time, are said to have been the most cruel, and 
subjected them to cruelties too horrible to relate. 
Self-sacrificing missionaries labored hard and did 
what they could; but one of the earliest of the white 
men in New Zealand asks, of what use were the 
blankets and Bibles of the missionaries, against the 



NEW ZEALAND. 73 

rum and muskets of the whalers and trading vessels ? 
Missionaries, from various causes, have found it, and 
still find it, slow work amongst them. They believe 
in a good and a bad spirit. When spoken to about the 
soul, they would captiously ask the missionary how 
he knew anything about it? When spoken to about 
their false gods, they would get angry, and tell the 
speaker to hold his tongue, or talk about something 
else. They would often profess to believe what was 
said; but it was in order to get some advantage over 
the missionary, and afterwards indulge in merry 
laughter at his expense. It is said that a Maorie boy 
was sent to Howe, by the Catholic bishop, to be edu- 
cated, and then sent back to New Zealand to be made 
into a priest, but turned out so bad, he was expelled 
from their school, and lived and died a bad Maorie. 
The present Romish Bishop of Wellington, New Zea- 
land, at a gathering of Catholics, in England, a few 
months ago, stated that there were about 8,000 of 
Maories in his diocese, and of these about 1,000, or 
nearly so, were in the Roman Catholic Church. 
Protestantism, he spoke of as the leprosy of Chris- 
tianity. For these Catholic Maories, a church has 
been built, and a catechism and other books printed, 
at a cost of not less than $2,500 for each publication ! 
Catholic and Episcopalian efforts may seem, as far as 
numbers are concerned, to succeed at least a little, but, 
with whomsoever we talked, there was expressed a 
doubt that indicated but little hope. Te-Whiti, one 
of their chiefest prophets, has such a hold upon many 



74 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

of them, that they put the most implicit faith in his 
statements. Quite recently he told his followers that 
very shortly the Son of Man will come, and restore 
the Maorie to his place of rule and dominion on the 
earth. An educated Maorie, the owner of a .race- 
horse, and Jiving near Auckland, hearing this prophet 
thus hold forth, and telling how the Lord would 
come with the multitude of his angels, trample his 
enemies under foot, and establish the reign of right- 
ousness on earth, exclaimed with glowing eyes, " Is 
not that grand!" Of a European standing by, he 
asked, " Did you buy land on the plains?" On be- 
ing answered in the negative, he said, " That is right, 
for the Lord will come in his might, and by his own 
power restore it all to the Maories." One night Te- 
Whiti spoke for three hours, telling them that the 
Lord was about to come, even that night. The night 
passed, and the morning came, and still he did not 
come; but the infatuated Maories believe in Te-Whiti 
still. He takes care, however, amid all his prophe- 
cies that the Lord is about to come and restore all the 
lands back to the Maories, that he utters no words 
that may invite to a breach of the peace. Perhaps, 
hardly ever was there such a compound of ability, 
heathen superstition and mutilated Christian knowl- 
edge, as meet together in Te-Whiti, and no influence 
at work amongst this splendid race is more obstruc- 
tive than his. Such crowds gather under his influ- 
ence, that some epidemic, it is feared, will be the re- 
sult ; they live in such a limited space for the time 



NEW ZEALAND. 75 

being, and under the worst kind of sanitary condi- 
tions. It may even become a necessity that steps be 
taken to counteract the whole matter. The present 
indications seem to be that the great body of adult 
Maories will pass away civilized in some measure, but 
wholly unchristianized. If the professed churches 
were one, and these made united effort, there is no 
just reason to doubt but the entire mass of them 
would be speedily turned from darkness to light, and 
from the power of Satan unto God. As it is, sec- 
tarianism operates as a crushing and blighting curse 
— creeds are esteemed of more consequence than 
souls, and sectarian shibboleths of more value than 
the blood of redemption, shed for the salvation of 
these benighted tribes of the children of men. Sec- 
tarianism, rather than see, at the expense of its creeds 
and shibboleths, "a nation born in a day," would 
look on, and with but a broken front seek to accom- 
plish the impossible, and suffer the people to perish, 
body and soul, unless they can be saved on the same 
plan which suffers the people to perish at home. 

We now leave New Zealand and its people, and in 
our next will try to tell you something about what we 
saw and heard and did in Australia. 

T. Coop, H. Exley. 

Melbourne, South Australia, Jan. 3, 1881. 



LETTER VII. 

AUSTRALIA. — VICTORIA. 

We are in Australia, the turned-up-side-down 
part of the world ; and we who have not done it, 
have come hither also! What its meaning may be, is 
still among the mysteries the future only can reveal. 
If we were astonished at nearly everything we saw in 
New Zealand, we are certainly not less astonished at 
what we see here. As we pass over the " Rip" a 
place " where two seas meet/' for a vast space we see 
the waters roll and tumble in great waves, and liter- 
ally boil and swirl, and tumble over each other, as if 
this was the great play-ground of the waves let loose 
on a holiday. Passing across this exceedingly restless 
" Rip," after a short time, passing over the Bay of 
Port Philip, some forty miles in length, we enter the 
mouth of the river Yarra (a native name, which 
means flowing), and the magnificent city of Mel- 
bourne comes into sight — a city, with its suburbs, of 
some 250,000 people, and which has grown up in the 
time of many who came here strong young men, and 
who are still but in the prime of life. The river is 
crowded on either bank with vast industries of vari- 
ous kinds, and long lines of ships from the four 

points of the compass crowd its wharves. As we 

(70) 



AUSTRALIA. 77 

approached the city (our ship stopping at one point to 
disembark the Government mails), a small vessel 
drew near containing the oarsmen and one other 
man ; a young man passed down from the ship into it, 
when we all knew that two long-separated brothers 
had met. They flung their arms passionately around 
each other, kissed each other, and patted each other 
on the back, and renewed their embraces, till all eyes 
were moist, and choking sensations felt in the throat. 
The common human nature of all seemed to find 
some measure of expression in the tearful joy of these 
two brothers. By and by, as we drew near to the 
place of landing, straining eyes were directed from 
the ship to the shore, and from the shore to the ship, 
in search of those since last meeting with whom long 
years had intervened. A hat was seen to be lifted off 
by one on the wharf, speedily recognized by one on 
the ship, and in a few minutes Bro. Exley had grasped 
the hand and given the speechless kiss, too overcome 
to utter a word, to the only brother he had in the 
world, Mr. George Exley, whose long separation had 
lasted through twenty-eight years. Bro. Earl bap- 
tized him many years ago, and he is now one of the 
deacons of the Lygon street church. Bro. Porter, 
late evangelist of the Collingwood church, also came 
to meet and give welcome to these Australian shores. 
The voyage from Dunedin, New Zealand, to Mel- 
bourne, lasted six days, and was exceedingly stormy 
and distressing. Bro. Coop having started a few days 
before Bro. Exley, spent a little time at Hobart, Tas- 



78 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

mania, and made a few very pleasant acquaintances. 
The brethren there have just finished the erection of 
a nice meeting-house, and are hoping to do a good 
work for the Lord and Christ. 

It is difficult to speak of Melbourne as a new city. 
Taking it all in all, it has hardly a rival anywhere in 
the world. We have both done some pretty tall 
boasting in our time about America, but really we 
just felt as if hit below the fair-fight line and had our 
breath suddenly taken away. Melbourne, with its 
magnificent streets and side-paths, its immense places 
of business, its splendid public buildings, its large 
number of exceedingly beautiful and large and solidly 
substantial churches of all persuasions, its wonderful 
Public Library and Museum, with its nearly 200 
pieces of costly statuary, its galleries of oil-paintings 
and water-color drawings, its immense Reading Hall 
— itself one of the noblest and most imposing struc- 
tures, magnificently appointed, with its lofty ceiling, 
lighting, carving, gilding, its long rows of supporting 
Corinthian columns, massive marble and granite — 
and its Library of more than 101,000 volumes, with 
immense globes, maps, etc., and every accommodation 
for readers and students — compel unbounded admira- 
tion, and a conviction that only a few of the oldest 
and wealthiest cities of either old or new world can 
at all compete with it. San Francisco, in many re- 
spects, is an inferior city in comparison. Surprise is 
a feeble word to express our sensations — the more 
we became acquainted with the city, the more were 



• AUSTRALIA. 79 

we filled with a ceaseless delight. Perhaps no city in 
the world, certainly none of the same age, in either 
America or England, can boast of so many and such 
splendidly appointed and well kept city parks and re- 
serves as Melbourne. The Zoological gardens are 
both very extensive; have one of the finest collections 
of wild animals — collected from all over the world — 
to be found, with few exceptions. Australia has a large 
number of wonderful serpents, and most of them ap- 
pear to be poisonous to a deadly degree — quite a col- 
lection of them are to be seen in the gardens. The 
largest of all serpents we ever saw is here, and is of 
the Rock Snake tribe, and was brought from India. 
It is a terrible looking beast. 

Adjoining the Zoological Gardens is an immense 
enclosure called the Royal Park. We do not know 
its dimensions, but it is very large. On New Year's 
day — here a beautiful summer day — thousands of 
the Sunday-school children were here enjoying them- 
selves in all kinds of innocent games. A large num- 
ber of immense tents were scattered over the park, 
and abundant provision was made for the wants of all. 
Our brethren were well represented — not less than 
three large tents were erected in different parts of the 
park, belonging to the churches of Lygon street, 
Collingwood and Hotham, and scholars, teachers and 
friends enjoyed themselves to the full. The town 
hall, for a new city, is an astonishing building, the 
like of which it would be hard to find in most cities. 
Its Public Hall — which seats 3,200 persons — has an 



80 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

organ which they claim, for power and quality, to be 
second only to the largest in the world. It was built 
by the same firm which built the great organ in the 
Crystal Palace, Sydenham, London. Its hight is 32 
feet, and it contains more than 4,000 pipes, and cost 
$35,000. The hall commands $100 per night rental. 
The post-office, considering the age of the city, will 
bear favorable comparison with even New York city. 
The government buildings, it is believed, exceed any- 
thing in America, except in a few of the oldest and 
wealthiest States, whilst the streets have no superior 
in the world. 

Melbourne is the capital of the Colony of Victoria, 
a region about 450 miles in length by 250 in breadth, 
embracing only a few square miles less than Great 
Britain, exclusive of the smaller islands. Victoria 
colony comprises about one thirty-fourth part of this 
vast island continent. It does not yet contain one 
million of people; but of these ninety-five per cent, 
are British subjects by birth, and only five per cent, 
of foreign birth. About 642,000 of the population 
are Protestants, 211,000 Romanists, 5,000 Jews, 2,200 
Pagans, and about 2,200 nondescript. There are 
about 119 males to 100 females in the population. 
Nearly 1,100 post-offices, and a most efficient postal 
service exists throughout the whole colony, and some 
idea may be formed as to the business of the postal 
departments, from the official report, that in 1879 
more than 36,500,000 letters, newspapers and packets 
passed through the various post-offices in the colony. 




PUBLIC LIBRARY, NATIONAL SALLERY, AND MUSEUM. 




NEW LAV/ COURTS. 



AUSTRALIA. 81 

The colony has much more than 3,000 miles of tele- 
graph line, and nearly 6,000 miles of wire in opera- 
tion ; over which, in 1879, were transmitted 1,010,116 
telegrams — one-fourth of which were on Govern- 
ment account. All the railways of Victoria are the 
property of the State, nearly 1,200 miles of which are 
open for traffic — ahout 4,000,000 miles were traveled 
over in 1879 ; the total receipts from which were 
nearly $7,500,000, leaving the Government nearly 
$3,750,000 clear income above working expenses. In 
1879 this little colony, and so thinly settled as yet, 
had 210,105 horses, 290,436 milch cows, 894,436 
other horned cattle, 9,379,276 sheep and 177,373 pigs. 
From these facts it is a clear thing that Australia (for 
all the other colonies are equally rich in these direc- 
tions) will prove a very formidable competitor with 
the great West, in the English markets. That com- 
petition has already successfully begun, and unless 
railway freights are very largely reduced in all the 
Western States, the West will have to beat a retreat. 
Not only this, but the Australians are wide-awake 
to the quality of their stock, and this is certainly of 
a high order, compared to much of the scrub stock 
which now finds its way to England from American 
shippers. 

Knowing that the Standard has a large circulation 
among Western farmers, these items are given as be- 
ing of real interest to them, so that they may take 
steps to lose no market open to them, but so improve 
as to keep and extend. 



82 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

The Victorian gold-fields, since first discovered in 
1851, have yielded about 49,000,000 ounces of gold, 
which, at twenty dollars per ounce, reaches the 
enormous sum of $980,000,000. 

As an indication of the intellectual tastes of Vic- 
torians — the Public Library of Melbourne alone, was 
visited by about 260,000 persons in 1878. Besides 
this institution, there are scattered through the col- 
ony 169 other libraries, athenaeums, scientific, literary 
and mechanics' institutes, and possessing more than 
221,600 volumes; and the buildings erected for them, 
in almost every instance, judging from what we saw, 
are not only substantial, but of great architectural 
beauty. These various institutions were visited during 
the year 1878, when no special excitement was urging 
them, by more than 2,600,000 persons. All these 
institutions, except one or two, are open to the public, 
free of charge. It is believed that the educational 
institutions and methods and results will compare 
favorably with those of any country in the world. It 
was officially stated by the government statist, that all 
the children in Victoria, between the ages of six and 
fifteen, were found receiving education during some 
part of the year, except about 7* per cent. Out of 
a population of less than a million by several scores 
of thousands, 227,037 children were attending school. 
Indeed, in whatever direction our inquiries extended, 
or our footsteps wandered, the conviction was forced 
upon us that the best informed Englishmen in Eng- 
land, who have not seen these colonies, are almost en- 



AUSTRALIA. 83 

tirely ignorant of what is being done here ; and the 
American who does not desire to modify his opinion 
that America is ahead of all other countries in the 
world, had certainly better stay at home. 

Melbourne has no rival for a city of her years. 
Victoria, like all the rest of the Australian colonies, 
is some 10,000 miles further away from the great 
centers of population, civilization and wealth of the 
old world, than any of the States; and yet, with this 
immense drawback, she can surely carry off the palm 
in a large number of things, without which no city or 
country can be truly prosperous. The entire State of 
Iowa can not successfully compete with this one city 
— Melbourne. 

There is no such extreme poverty in this colony as 
abounds in the large cities of England or America. 
Melbourne, with her city-like suburban towns, con- 
tains about 280,000 people, yet we saw only sobriety, 
cleanliness, and a universal neatness in dress. 

The hours of labor are eight hours per day, begin- 
ning at 8 A. m., and closing at 5 p: m., with one hour 
off for dinner. Saturdays, all quit work at 1 p. M. 
Common laborers receive $1.80 per day, and skillful 
workmen from $2.50 to $3.00 per day. Flour is 
about three cents per pound, retail; mutton and beef, 
about four to six cents. Clothing is cheaper than in 
America, but dearer than in England. The people 
take a large number of holidays — in which even the 
most important public officers participate. 

Christmas day and New Year's day both falling on 



84 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

Saturday, we were surprised to find that even these 
were all closed from Friday night in each week, until 
the following Tuesday morning, except from 7 to 9:30 
A. M. on Monday. Life here seems to be enjoyed, 
and there is such a very marked absence of the rowdy 
element, even on the most public occasions, that one 
is compelled to admire the good order, self-respect 
and law-abiding character which are marked traits of 
the Australians, as far as our opportunities for form- 
ing an opinion enabled us to do so. 

Under the guidance of Bro. J. A. Davis, we paid a 
visit to the Exhibition grounds, buildings and ex- 
hibits; and here, also, the Australians may fairly 
challenge any city on earth that is of the. same age as 
Melbourne. The buildings are not simply of an ex- 
tent required by their international character, but 
grand in conception and execution. They stand in 
the midst of an immense public square, containing 
nearly a hundred acres, laid out as if with fairy wand 
directed by a poet's eye. The fountains, statuary, 
shrubbery, trees and flowers, are all laid out with the 
most exquisite skill and perfect taste ; the whole of 
the grounds enclosed by an iron fence both lofty and 
very beautiful, the like of which we don't recollect 
seeing anywhere but surrounding some of the great 
parks in London. As we went through the various 
departments, it was very evident that in all classes of 
Australian exhibits, especially in silver and gold, 
woolen fabrics and machinery, in their several depart- 
ments, Australia is abreast with the foremost, and 



A USTRALIA. 85 

need not fear any. The machinery would be a credit 
to the best firms in the world, and it is clear that if 
Australia should import much, it would be because 
her demands are larger than her present facilities can 
supply, and not because of any deficiency in skill. 

We had a very pleasant interview with Rev. Mr. 
Rantoul, Presbyterian minister, formerly of South- 
port, England, and also with Rev. Mr. Chapman, 
Baptist minister. He told us the Baptists numbered 
about 2,000 members in Melbourne. They are open 
communion, and very open. Their church edifice is a 
splendid affair, and their school-rooms are of a fine 
order. You may be sure that we were busy enough, 
in one way or another. Bro. Coop gave addresses to 
the brethren of Lygon street, Collingwood, Unity 
Hall, Hawthorne, and one or two other places, on 
missions and Sunday-school work ; whilst Bro. Exley 
had hardly touched Melbourne, although wearied out, 
almost, with six .days' tossing on the sea, before he 
was pressed into the service. The meetings were 
such that, so far as known to us, we have no such 
meetings in England or America, save in few in- 
stances. Bro. Exley preached on " The Beginning 
at Jerusalem," in the vast Music Academy, to an au- 
dience—although it was one of those almost intoler- 
ably hot days which now and then sweep over the 
land — of more than 1,500 people. On more favor- 
able evenings, Bro. Haley has an audience of more 
than 2,000! We have no meeting-houses, so far as 
known to us, west of the Mississippi, at all to be com- 



86 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

pared with those in the colonies, for capacity, solidity 
and school accommodations. Davenport, Iowa, and 
Dubuque, come nearest. The membership of the 
various churches of the brethren in the city and the 
suburbs 3 is about 1,400 to 1,500. Bro. Haley is the 
Evangelist in Lygon street, and now that the services 
in the Music Academy are closed for the season, the 
church in Lygon street is crowded. Last Lord's day 
evening, after the address, quite a number, some eight 
or ten, went forward. Bro. Bates, late of Christ 
Church, New Zealand, is the evangelist of the church 
in Collingwood; Bro. Yates, of North Fitzroy ; Bro. 
P. Brown, of Footscray, and Bro. Colburne, of Ho- 
tham. Besides these, there are churches of consider- 
able strength and ability, meeting in Unity Hall, 
Swanston street, and Prahran, the latter of which has 
a good, substantial church, but which is now unsuit- 
able, and they are about to build a larger. All of 
them have Sunday-schools where they have facilities 
for them, and good ones, with efficient staffs of 
teachers and officers. There is also another church at 
Hawthorne, only feeble as yet, besides several church- 
es scattered at distances of from four to thirty miles 
from Melbourne. Bro. Haley was right when he 
said, " We know how to set preachers at work, who 
come around these parts." We had ample proof of 
their ability in this line. Bro. Coop spoke in nearly 
every one of the city and suburban churches. Whilst 
Bro. Exley preached some sixteen times amongst 
them, although never strong any of the time. 



AUSTRALIA. 87 

One thing is very noticeable in all the colonial 
churches — they sing. All seem to esteem it a pre- 
cious part of the worship to sing, and they sing as if 
they felt it was a privilege. Bro. Exley insists that, 
whilst personally loving the organ, and having no ob- 
jection to it in worship under some circumstances, yet 
that to introduce an organ here would be an imper- 
tinence, as well as an intrusion, and out of place, 
if used to lead or improve the music where such sing- 
ing is maintained as we have heard; and that the 
shortest way to settle the music question is to get the 
heart so filled with praise that the lips must utter it 
forth ; and at once to stop all controversy about the 
organ. But some fear (troubled consciences especial- 
ly) that Bro. Exley's idea is a dangerous one — and 
it certainly is, if the wonderful words are true, lately 
spoken in the Edinburgh Free Presbytery, by Rev. 
Mr. Balfour and Rev. Dr. Begg, that " hymns never 
came alone. Their introduction invariably opened 
the door for other innovations in the direction, for ex- 
ample, of instrumental music "and artistic singing"! 
Was there ever human wisdom, so much of it, crushed 
into one sentence before? If these gentlemen are right, 
then Bro. Exley is wrong, and we had better let the 
hymns alone; also, lest their use should bring in artist- 
ic singing, and so corrupt the simplicity of Christian 
praise, let us have recourse to " guid hard psaums" 
read or sung in ^w-artistic manner. We spent Christ- 
mas clay at Bro. Alfred Shaw's hospitable home, whose 
beautiful house and grounds, instead of looking, as they 



88 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

are, but a few years old, wear all the appearance of a 
genuine old English home, with the best taste and art 
employed to lay oif the grounds and make every 
thing look beautiful. Here we saw oranges or lemons, 
we forget which, perhaps both, the trees bearing 
blossoms, fruit just forming, well grown fruit unripe, 
fully grown fruit, and ripe, all on the same tree! Bro. 
and Sister Haley, Bro. George Exley, and Brethren 
Coop and H. Exley, put in a great day there, Bro. 
and Sister Shaw showing us every courtesy. The 
day was finished oif by a large balloon being sent up, 
to find if it could, and give welcome to, the incoming 
New Year, 1881, and bid a kindly farewell to the old 
one, 1880. Bro. J. A. Davis, a gentleman whom 
Bro. J. B. Rotherham baptized in England many 
years ago, with his excellent lady, made us most wel- 
come to their hospitable mansion, also inviting us to 
make it our home during our stay in Melbourne. 
They invited quite a nice company of Brothers and 
Sisters to a social cup of tea, to meet us and spend a 
pleasant social evening together. From all we know 
and can learn, the cause has taken deep hold in Mel- 
bourne and surrounding suburbs and country in the 
colony of Victoria. The material composing the 
churches is such as we feel sure would gladden the 
hearts of the brethren, both in the United States and 
all over Great Britain. Their path has not been a 
smooth one, nor is it likely to be; but the brethren 
have done a grand work, and are awake to the neces- 
sity of putting forth all their strength to maintain it 



AUSTRALIA. 89 

and extend it. Sister Haley is doing a good work in 
teaching a large singing-class, in connection with the 
church on Lygon street. Bro. and Sister George 
Green well have both safely arrived from England, 
and are looking well. Their destination is Adelaide, 
in the Colony of South Australia. He will, it is 
hoped, be of real service to the churches. There is 
work here to do which he is well qualified to do, and 
which, perhaps, he has been brought here providen- 
tially to do. 

On the 8th of January, Bro. Coop, leaving Mel- 
bourne for Adelaide, left Bro. Exley to follow a few 
days later, so that he could preach at Collingwood the 
next Lord's day, in the absence of Bro. Bates. 

At this point we drop our mutual pen, and prom- 
ise, the Lord permitting, to resume it again in the 
city of Adelaide; only further saying that, so far as 
we know, our visit has not been in vain, and that all 
would be glad to see us again. 

T. Coop, H. Exley. 

Melbourne, Australia, Jan. 9. 



LETTER VIII. 

SOUTH AUSTRALIA. — ADELAIDE. 

Leaving Melbourne, Jan. 10th, 1881, after some 
fifty hours' sailing, we reached in safety the city of 
Adelaide, the capital of South Australia. Bro. Hin- 
dle, late Evangelist in England, and who is now oc- 
cupying the pulpit of the Grote Street Church, until 
the return of Bro. Gore from America, together with 
Bro. Smith, Evangelist of the church at Hindmarsh, 
Adelaide, and a daughter of Bro. George Greenwell, 
of England also, were all on the wharf to give us 
welcome, as we stepped on shore, saying, " Welcome 
to South Australia!" 

The voyage was very stormy. Indeed, it is to us 
an evident mistake to call these waters, the South 
Pacific. Since sighting the shores of New Zealand 
till now, every time we have been on the sea we 
could most truthfully sing, 

'.■ Storm after storm rises dark o'er my way." 

However, we reached in safety the city of Adel- 
aide, " The Beautiful." Whilst Melbourne is the 
capital city of the colony of Victoria, Adelaide is the 
capital city of the Province and colony of South 

Australia. Besides these large regions, there are 
190) 



SOUTH AUSTRALIA. 91 

three other immense tracts of country, each one large 
enough to become the seat of great nations, viz. : New 
South Wales, Queensland and Western Australia. 
The region -called South Australia, and which is all 
comprised within this one colony, has an area of 914,- 
930 square miles, or about 585,427,200 acres, and 
stretches across the whole island-continent, from the 
Southern Ocean to the Indian Oceon. 

The colony was founded in 1836, and many of its 
first settlers are still living to see the fruits of their 
daring, courage and enterprise. Standing on a spot 
of ground facing to the sea, at Glenelg, some six 
miles from Adelaide, and under a very large natural 
arch formed by the bending over of a very large 
Blue Gum tr°e, until three of its limbs touch the 
ground, at a distance of about forty feet from the 
trunk, stood Sir John Hindmarsh, E. X., on the 28th 
of January, 1836, and proclaimed this country a 
colony of the British Crown. January 28th is the 
National red-letter day of the South Australians. At 
this time, Port Adelaide, about eight miles away, had 
not been discovered. By the kind courtesy of Bro. 
T. Magarey, whose sea-side residence is close at hand, 
we were taken to see it, and stood under the venerable 
arch, perhaps on the very spot from whence Sir John 
Hindmarsh had proclaimed the colony, some forty- 
four years ago, and distant about one mile from the 
spot where the first Pilgrim Fathers landed. Since 
then, there has been witnessed the successful experi- 
ment of planting a free colony on a free soil, where 



92 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

liberty flourishes without licentiousness, and where, 
also, the daring, restless and expansive energy of the 
present, has not — nor seems likely to — broken away 
from the traditions of the past. It seems to be cer- 
tainly true, that here, the freest of free political and 
religious institutions flourish harmoniously side by 
side with a profound regard for and attachment to the 
monarchical institutions of the mother country, of 
which we never heard them speak but with the realest 
affection — and always speaking of England as Home. 
They boast of possessing the broadest form of politi- 
cal and religious liberty, and along with that a very 
marked absence of lawless excess. They are a grand 
proof that religion can flourish without a State 
church, and they possess a government — one by 
themselves, and for themselves; and that without 
losing their attachment to the institutions and gov- 
ernment of the land that has become the fruitful 
mother of such mighty nations. 

This one colony of South Australia is in length 
about 2,000 miles, by about five hundred miles in 
breadth — a very vast region, truly. It has a popu- 
lation, however, of only some 260,000 people, at the 
utmost. Of these, about 5,000 are aborigines, but 
they are rapidly dwindling away. A bare recital of 
what may look like common-place facts, and without 
the slightest desire to boast, may certainly give a 
large and very legitimate pride to every South Aus- 
tralian. 

The colony was founded on principles directly op- 






SOUTH AUSTRALIA. 93 

posed to a State Church, and yet two-thirds of the 
entire population have provided themselves with 
places of worship. Over 900 churches and other 
buildings have been erected for worship, containing 
about 150,000 sittings. About eighty-five per cent, 
of the population are Protestants, and the other 
fifteen per cent. Romanists. The Church of England 
has the largest membership, but the Wesleyan Meth- 
odists have the larger number of places of worship. 
There appears also to be a most active and efficient 
Sunday-school work carried on, as about 40,000 chil- 
dren attend the Sunday-schools, or one in six and 
a half of the whole population. 

The institutions for the relief of the sick — hospi- 
tals for the poor, outcast, blind, insane, old and 
infirm, deaf and dumb, and for even inebriates — are 
so many and so well provided for, that it is believed 
that this little handful of people does more to bless 
humanity and to put something of divine sweetness 
into the cup of human bitterness and sorrow, than 
did the whole Roman Empire during the whole thou- 
sand years of its existence, from first to last. 

As an indication of the thrift of the Colony, it may 
be observed that there was exported in 1879 to the 
value of §94.80 per head for the whole population, 
whilst the imports reached the same sum, and a small 
fraction over. Among the exports there were 90,000 
tons of flour and 442,000 quarters of wheat. There 
is no question but what the great Western States will 
have formidable competitors in breadstuff's in all 



94 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

these colonies, as well as in beef. In 1879 fully seven 
and a half millions of dollars in breadstuffs was ex- 
ported from this little Colony alone. Besides this, 
they exported some 56,000,000 pounds of wool, and 
of splendid quality, Nearly two-thirds of the export 
trade of this Colony is absorbed by Great Britain. 
There has just been completed and perfected an Aus- 
tralian Reaping Machine, which, by a very simple ar- 
rangement, also threshes out the wheat in the cleanest 
manner. We were told that it was not ready in time 
to be entered in the list of Australian exhibits in the 
International Exhibition now being held in Mel- 
bourne. It is, however, pronounced a success. South 
Australia already exports to England reaping ma- 
chines. Indeed, there are a large number of articles 
produced or manufactured in these Colonies which 
will prove no small competitors against all other 
countries in the English markets. 

The total liabilities of the eight South Australian 
banks are but little more than one-half of their assets. 
The bank buildings are marvels of architecture, both 
for splendor and extent. 

In 1879, this one Colony, containing but a com- 
parative handful of people, possessed 133,000 horses, 
266,000 horned cattle, 6,000,000 sheep, 90,500 pigs, 
and 11,200 goats. Since their copper mines were 
first discovered, but a few years ago, they have ex- 
ported more than $80,000,000 worth of copper. They 
have built more than 620 miles of railway, and are 
rapidly extending their old lines and building new 



SOUTH A USTRALIA. 95 

ones. They have built more than 3,300 miles of 
highways, very broad, and of such a solid character 
that it is very doubtful if the entire West from the 
Missouri could show in the aggregate, not only so 
many miles of decent roads, but outside of cities any- 
thing comparable to these. Nearly 1,000 miles of 
these roads are built in the most thoroughly solid 
manner, and metalled to the depth of some eight to 
ten inches with the best material. We have not seen 
even a small country bridge but what is so substantial 
that the heaviest trains and weights could be run over 
it ad libitum. The larger bridges are very fine and 
strong, built to last for generations. One of them, 
stretching across the river Murray, is 1,900 ft. long. 
Besides all this, these enterprising colonists have 
actually built more than 4,400 miles of telegraph 
line, and of this nearly 2,000 miles form one continu- 
ous line stretching from Adelaide in the south to 
Port Darwin in the north, thus stretching across the 
entire continent, and over 1,350 miles of the country 
entirely unsettled by white men. Iron posts are used 
over the larger part of the line, and both posts and 
wire had to be carted over the whole distance. Wells 
had to be sunk at many points for water; a serious 
number of the horses died, and one-third of the bul- 
locks, but in spite of all difficulties, in less than two 
years this great trans-continental telegraph line was 
completed, bringing South Australia into telegraphic 
communication with nearly the whole civilized world, 
and done and paid for by a population of, then, less 



96 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

than 900,000 souls. The natives often attacked them 
as they made their way across this almost terra incog- 
nita, but after they had received a few shocks from 
the batteries, they let the wires alone, and spread con- 
sternation among their savage friends, calling the 
telegraph the " white fellows' devil." 

The city of Adelaide, with its suburbs, has a popu- 
lation of some 40,000 people. It is one and one-third 
miles square, with five large reserves of park grounds, 
so located as to be both exceedingly ornamental and 
conducive to the health and beauty of the city, and 
also laid out and planted with trees, "shrubs and 
flowers, and well fenced in. The streets are all laid 
out at right angles, and are equal to anything at least 
in this half of the world. The entire city is sur- 
rounded by a belt of park lands nearly half a mile 
wide, reserved by act of Parliament for the health, 
pleasure and recreation of the people. Every even- 
ing, except Lord's day evening, when fine, the game 
of cricket is played by large numbers of people. 
Bro. D. Galle, a gentleman connected with the press, 
and well known in Adelaide, as he drove us around 
the city, assured us that he had counted, on a Satur- 
day afternoon, as many as forty games of cricket 
being played at the same time on these park-lands, 
and not big boys merely, but by the strong muscle, 
bone and sinew of the city. 

Two daily papers, of eight large pages, are pub- 
lished in the city, each of which also appears in an 
evening edition. Their morning editions are about 




Yi~"i in the Betani 



Main Walk and Central F: 




Yiew in the Botanic Gardens.— The Rosary 



SO UTH A USTRALIA. 97 

10,000, the evening not so large. Each office also 
issues a weekly. One of them, as large as the Stand- 
ard, contains forty pages, filled with the best readings 
and forming a continuous history of the colony. The 
other issues also its weekly, in large and handsome 
form, and contains twenty-eight pages. Besides these, 
there are some thirty other papers published in the 
Colony, and several religious periodicals in addition. 
Indeed, their reading-rooms, museums and educa- 
tional institutions indicate a people very forward to 
understand and secure the advantages of a wide and 
liberal culture. Common school education is com- 
pulsory between the ages of seven and thirteen. The 
text-books are on a graduated scale, approved by the 
Government; and no teacher, highest or lowest, is 
allowed at his own sweet will, as but too often 
happens in the Western States, to the great detriment 
of the pupils, to change them, and substitute others. 
The salaries of the teachers, paid out of public funds, 
vary from $500 to $1,500. In the city of Adelaide 
there is a University being erected, standing on a 
reserve of five acres, which Government has endowed 
with" 50,000 acres of land, and five per cent, in addi- 
tion on all sums donated to the Institution. Already 
two of its wealthy citizens have each donated the 
sum of $100,000. No religious tests will be required 
of either professors or students. 

The city of Adelaide is especially rich in churches. 
Indeed, it has so many, that whilst Melbourne, be- 
cause of its large number of grand public buildings 
7 



98 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

now being erected, is called " the city of unfinished 
palaces," Adelaide is called the "city of churches." 
Its churches are so many, and so large and beautiful, 
that it is evident that the people are, on the whole, 
both well-to-do and pious. 

Through the kindness of the Hon. Philip Santo, 
member of the Legislative Council (Upper Chamber), 
Bro. Exley had an introduction to the Hon. Thomas 
King, Minister of Public Education, from whom 
he received a splendid volume on the History of 
South Australia, just issued from the press, and with 
inside pockets and maps, and gotten up in the best 
style of the publisher's art. The honorable gentle- 
man was exceedingly kind, and seemed glad to have 
the opportunity to put into the hand of a stranger 
seeking information anything belonging to his de- 
partment. Under his administration, educational mat- 
ters are not likely to flag. 

With Bro. D. Galle as cicerone, we visited public 
institutions of all kinds, and in all the utmost court- 
esy was shown. Going into the Government Land 
Office, the walls hung 'round with maps of all sec- 
tions of country open to settlement — large maps 
attached to endless canvas bands, passing over rollers 
— we had the entire system of land conveyancing ex- 
plained by the chief of the department. The beauty 
and size of the public buildings, such as the post- 
office, town hall, law courts, banks, museums, schools, 
etc., is such that to describe them would almost sub- 
ject one to the charge of " Australian blowing." We 



SOUTH AUSTRALIA. . 99 

have traveled a good deal, and seen a good deal, but 
have not, we venture to say, considering the years 
and the circumstances, seen anything at all to be com- 
pared to Melbourne and Adelaide. Were we Aus- 
tralians, we would " blow" and not be ashamed of it; 
but as we are only a stray Englishman and an Anglo- 
American, we will only say that, whether Great 
Britain thinks she has reason to be proud of her 
stalwart daughters or not, the daughters have abun- 
dant reason to be proud of themselves. 

The Botanic gardens of Adelaide, under the super- 
intendence of Dr. R. Schomburgk, a gentleman who 
is a member of nearly all the learned societies of 
Great Britain and Continental Europe, are almost 
indescribable for their order, extent and beauty. In 
these respects, they astonish even those who have seen 
Central Park, New York, and the Kew Gardens, 
London. The plants in these gardens, exclusive of 
florists' flowers, are nearly 9,000 ; whilst the trees are 
not only many and very various, but so arranged as 
to make the spot one of the loveliest in the world. 
Here there is everything to delight the eye and 
gratify the most cultivated taste. The oleanders, for 
size, mass, color and fragrance, exceed all we ever 
saw, either in England, Jersey, or elsewhere. It is, 
however, a very curious fact that the beautiful china- 
aster, so universally — and deservedly so — a favorite 
all over the West, here is only a small and insignifi- 
cant flower. And the chrysanthemum-aster here goes 
back to its original type. 



100. A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

The gardens have one of the finest of palm-houses, 
and filled with the rarest plants; they have also a 
splendid museum, ferneries, and houses for all kinds 
of tropical growths. They have also a large aviary, 
for the purpose of acclimatizing foreign birds. Of 
course they have acclimatized the English Sparrow, 
but, like the Americans, they seem to have been 
victimized by the introduction of the House Sparrow, 
instead of the U edge Sparrow, and consequently the 
fruit is no small sufferer from its depredations. The 
gardens also contain a very respectable collection,, of 
wild animals, gathered from nearly all points of the 
compass — many of them, however, peculiar to Aus- 
tralia. 

On the plains, and in addition to all the ordi- 
nary kinds of fruit common to England and the 
United States, there are grown, and in great perfec- 
tion, many others, such as figs, lemons, oranges, nec- 
tarines, almonds, olives and citrons. 

Before leaving Adelaide, Bro. Thomas Magarey 
favored us with a ride around the city, and then took 
us out to his country estate, some eight miles away, to 
Enfield House. For a private gentleman, he owns 
one of the largest telescopes we have seen, outside 
of public institutions, and one of great range and 
power; and to keep it fitting company, a very large 
library also, and stocked with some of the choicest 
books. With him, religion is not a matter of form 
only; he is, in all the best senses of the words, a 
godly man. He seems to be more a man of deeds 



SOUTH AUSTRALIA. 101 

than many words. He holds views on John iii. 5, 
perhaps in full accord with what is called Plymouth 
Brethrenism, but by no means discarding the connec- 
tion between baptism and remission of sins. More, 
perhaps, we ought not to say, beyond this : that his 
views concerning the work of the Holy Spirit, and 
the believer's possession of it, whether incorrect or 
not, are very far removed from that soul-benumbing 
theory, that there is nothing but the Word alone. 

We were conducted all over his well-arranged 
home, fitted up with extensive bath-rooms, for every 
kind of bath, except salt water, that being some miles 
distant. From the top of his house, a vast expanse 
of land and sea is visible. His gardens have in them 
olive, lemon, orange, with a large variety of other 
trees, amongst them the kharob, or locust tree (cera- 
tonia siliqua), from which we obtained a few pods, 
such as the Prodigal would fain have eaten to still the 
cravings of his hunger. Bro. Magarey assured us 
that the olive would yet prove to be of great commer- 
cial importance. Our visit, with its kind courtesies, 
will not soon be forgotten. T. Coop, H. Exley. 

Adelaide, South Australia, Jan. 15, 1881. 



LETTER IX. 

SOUTH AUSTRALIA. — NATIVES AND CHURCHES. 

As intimated in our last, this country, South 
Australia, is destined to be a great oil producing 
country, and olives are planted out on a liberal scale. 
The oil is a better article than any imported. Some- 
times, however, fierce hot winds from the north (all 
hot winds here are from the north), sweep over the 
country, exceedingly trying, but not so prostrating as 
some of our hot days in Nebraska, when the fruit of 
all kinds, on the side exposed to them, is literally 
" baked." The rain-fall in Adelaide is only nineteen 
to twenty-one inches, but in the Mount Lofty Range, 
but eight miles off, the rain fall is 40.677. The mean 
temperature of an Adelaide winter, is 54° to 55°. 
The winter months are June, July and August. The 
spring months of September, October and November, 
are said to be the most genial months in the year, the 
average temperature being about 60° to 70°. The 
general average production of wheat in the whole 
region cultivated thus far in South Australia, is about 
nine bushels and forty-eight pounds per acre, and this 
for the past twenty years. The cost of production is, 
however, small, and the quality is such that it com- 
mands the highest price in the English market. On 
(102) 



SOUTH A USTRAL1A. 103 

the side of health, South Australia, so far as present 
statistics show, will compare favorably with any coun- 
try in Europe. From a very able pamphlet issued 
by our brother, Dr. Magarey, it is evident that, 
whilst for infants under twelve months old the death- 
rate is a shade heavier than in the most favored 
European country, the death-rate for adults is much 
less; so that, as Dr. Magarey says, "the Colony af- 
fords a good chance of them living to a good old age." 
There are about eighteen tribes of natives living in 
this part of the Colony, none of them numerous, most 
of them dwindling rapidly away. Some of them 
used to have a special propensity for stealing fat peo- 
ple from the other tribes and eating them ! If a man 
had a fat wife, he was very careful never to leave her 
unprotected, lest she should be siezed by prowling 
cannibals. Their history is involved in great ob- 
scurity. The first boat which they saw filled them 
with terror. The first oxen which they saw — two 
stray ones from a far-off ranche — they thought were 
demons, and fled from them in the wildest fear, call- 
ing them by the expressive name, wundaicityeri — 
that is, beings with spears on their heads — and ever 
since they have called all cattle wundawityerl — a fine 
illustration of the manner in which new names get 
coined. They are very expert in throwing, the 
" boomerang " and " kaike" or reed-spear. The reed- 
spear is a long, slender, tough rod, with a point of 
hard, heavy wood, about a foot long. They throw it 
with a taratye, or throwing-stick, and with such force 



104 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

and precision that it has been known to kill a man at 
nearly 300 feet, and passing through a tough bark 
shield also. The natives attribute all diseases to 
witchcraft, and their methods of cure are absurd 
enough. The doctor will sometimes kneel upon the 
sick man, and squeeze him until he groans out in 
agony — a method very much like that of some mus- 
cular M. D.'s among even white men, who pound and 
knead their victims in order to cure them. Often- 
times a gray-bearded old father will execute a solemn 
dance before his sick son, beating time to a kind of 
cymbal, called a tartengk, and utterly divested of all 
clothing, and feel that he has done wonders towards 
the recovery of the patient. 

Missions have been measurably successful. Still it 
is to be feared that in some parts of this vast island 
continent the method employed to make them Chris- 
tians has been that recommended by an old shepherd. 
Two natives having been arrested for killing another 
of their tribe, the old Scotchman suggested that they 
should be hanged; but who, when doubts as to the 
justice of such a course, in view of their manners and 
customs, were expressed, said : " I dinna think that 
we ought to care much aboot their manners and cus- 
toms at a\ We ought to mak* them gie up a' sich 
hathenish practices. Sure, it's our dooty to do a' we 
ran to mak' Christians o' them. Hang them, by a' 
means, sir; I say, hang them! Sure, it's our dooty 
to mak' Christians o' them!" 

The first time that some of them gathered into the 




SOUTH AUSTRALIAN BLACKS. 



SOUTH AUSTRALIA. 105 

Missionary's house, when they heard the clock strike, 
they listened in astonishment and fear, and then 
whispered, " What him say?" and then rushed in fear 
out of the house. Infanticide was very prevalent 
among them, until the missionary gave the mothers 
rations of flour, tea and sugar, until the little ones 
were twelve months old, and the practice at once 
came to an end ; but before that the babies were 
put to death as soon as born, and sometimes with 
horrible cruelty. We saw a few natives; some 
of them are really good-looking; they are very 
straight, and walk with all the dignity belonging 
to savage nature, and receiving favors from the 
whites, receive thejn as from equals. Many of their 
customs are of a very barbarous character, with many 
curious rites connected with them, and involving 
much suffering, but of their origin or meaning they 
can give no account. It is very reasonably supposed 
that these customs, in much better form at one time, 
had a meaning which is now lost, and are only 
observed from superstitious motives, and that the 
natives have descended from a higher state of civili- 
zation. The weapons which they possess are also of 
a kind which it is said they could not invent in their 
present state. The "boomerang" and throwing- 
stick are both of this kind. The " boomerang," 
when first heard of, suggested a new idea to even 
scientific men. They are said to have no power of 
invention, and the power of calculation only in a 
small degree. They can imitate what they see others 



106 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

do, but it seems impossible for them to originate any- 
thing fresh, or even to improve on the methods they 
have been taught. Everything about them indicates 
that man, in a state of barbarism, so far from raising 
himself into a state of civilization, inevitably and 
always goes down towards extinction. The intelligent 
among the South Australians speak of a time when 
their people were more numerous than now, and that 
their numbers had been decreasing long before the 
advent of the white man amongst them. The first 
comers possessed so much of civilization that they 
were enabled to increase in numbers; but as soon as 
they became corrupt, they had then reached a point 
where their barbarism rapidly tended to their extinc- 
tion. Savage life is fatal to the increase of the 
human family. It is, indeed, most strikingly true of 
all the savage tribes of the Colonies, as of the red 
men of the West, "If ye live after the flesh, ye 
shall die." Their decrease is rapidly hastened since 
the introduction of the vices of the white man. It 
does not seem at all likely that if man had been 
created in a condition as low, or lower than that 
of these aborigines, that he ever could have arisen 
out of it. What is very remarkable about them, is 
this: their language, though very limited, possessing 
not more than about 4,000 words, is yet a very highly 
organized language, and remarkable for its complex- 
ity of structure, the number of its inflections, and the 
precision with which it can be used. Those who 
have studied it, look upon it, not as a language in 



SOUTH AUSTRALIA. 107 

process of formation, but as rather the remnant of a 
noble tongue, now becoming extinct. It has six 
cases in each declension of nouns and pronouns, and 
a double set of pronouns for the sake of euphony and 
expression. Verbs are regularly formed from roots 
consisting of one vowel and two consonants, or two 
vowels and three consonants. They possess the 
faculty of readily learning other languages, but have 
no power to invent language. Their pronouns have 
three numbers, the singular, dual and plural. Not 
only have they all the cases we have, but several 
others in addition. The dual number, in some of the 
declensions of nouns, has eight cases, and all regularly 
formed. Surely, a barbarous people is utterly un- 
equal to all this, by any process of evolution yet dis- 
covered. There is a very curious and very striking 
similarity between many native words and some Eng- 
lish or other words, both in sound and sense, as, for 
instance: the words Dlomari, the gloaming ; Marti, for 
mortar ; Limgari, the tongue ; Napi, nupta — a spouse; 
Ngo, go. There is no evidence whatever, notwith- 
standing the character of their language, to indicate 
that of themselves they could advance from barbar- 
ism to civilization. Some facts would seem to indi- 
cate that even white men going among them, but 
without any set purpose to either seek to elevate 
them or to take care of their own higher culture, 
would be far more likely to become barbarized them- 
selves than influential for the elevation of the na- 
tives. Bro. T. Magarey told us of a white man who, 



108 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

having strayed into the bush, and supposed to be lost, 
after some fifteen years turned up again. He had 
been living amongst the natives, and was almost as 
black as themselves, and, whilst able to understand 
English when he heard it, found it difficult to speak 
it. One day, as a herdsman was tending his cattle, 
he saw this man, coming timidly and stealthily along, 
and at once called to his assistant to bring him 
the gun. The poor fellow understood that, and lift- 
ing up his hands, stammered out, in the best English 
he could command, "Don't shoot! me British obs- 
jeck." 

During our stay in Adelaide, we were domiciled 
at the beautiful home of the Hon. Philip Santo. 
Every kindness was shown to us, and the best of care 
taken of us. Bro. Coop addressed the churches of 
Adelaide, Hindmarsh and Norwood, on Sunday-school 
work and missions. Bro. Exley addressed the same 
churches on other themes, and to audiences it was a 
joy to look upon. Bro. Santo is one of the elders of 
the church in Grote street. During our stay here, 
the brethren held a grand tea-meeting in Grote street 
church, to give us welcome, and brethren from a 
distance came to participate in it. Letters, also, 
from some who could not be present, were read, giv- 
ing us welcome. Bro. and Sister George Greenwell 
were both present, and he gave us one of the most 
touchingly beautiful addresses to which we ever lis- 
tened. Of course we were called upon to contri- 
bute our share of the talking, and Bro. Exley fin- 










/ 



1 






PHILIP SANTO. 



SOUTH AUSTRALIA. 109 

ished his speech by singing them his favorite song — 

"Oh! the good we all may do, 
While the days are passing by." 

The churches in all the colonies seem to be very 
partial to tea-meetings, and a most enjoyable affair 
they make them. We have attended three of them. 

The church in Grote street, Adelaide, numbers 
about 450 members, and all living in peace ; the 
church in Hindmarsh about 300, and the church in 
Norwood about seventy. These last two are both in 
the suburbs close by. Besides, there is still a fourth 
in Adelaide, of about sixty members, if we remember 
rightly, in which Dr. Yercoe is a very earnest and 
active member, a gentleman whose medical reputation 
stands very high, and once a member of the church 
at Chelsea, London. 

Then there is still a fifth church, with a very 
respectable meeting-house, presided over by Bro. 
Hussey, a gentleman baptized many years ago by 
Bro. Campbell. He is an earnest believer in, and as 
earnest a pleader for, the doctrine of the near ap- 
proach of the Second Advent of the Lord from 
heaven. There is a constant interchange of preach- 
ers, I believe, amongst them all. The churches all 
have large Sunday-schools, except the last one. That 
at Hindmarsh numbers about 300, with a Bible-class 
of young men of about thirty members, and another 
of young women of about the same number. Con- 
nected with this church, they have a large and, we 



110 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

think, the best arranged Sunday-school hall we have 
seen. The great hall of the Sunday-school will seat 
between 300 and 400, and has nine class-rooms be- 
sides, five down one side, and four on the other side 
of the hall. Bro. Smith is the evangelist, and Dr. 
Kidner, well known to many in England, one of the 
elders. There are several other churches in the 
colonies, and some of them have good, substantial 
church buildings. 

The population of the colony does not exceed 260,- 
000, yet our brethren are one to ever} 7 one hundred 
and seventy-five. 

Adelaide, with its suburbs, has a population of 
about 40,000. Our brethren number amongst them 
about 900, or one to every 44, nearly. In London 
our membership is probably not more than one in 
every 10,000; in New York, about one in every 
5,000; in Birmingham, perhaps one in every 1,200, 
and in Cincinnati, about one in every 400. Some of 
these are only conjectures, but the disparity between 
the membership in the colonies, and the best of 
the churches in either England or America, in not 
small. 

For the most part, while faithful to the traditions 
of the apostles, they are not heresy hunters, and have 
but little sympathy with Procrustean methods. Our 
intercourse with them, will, we trust, prove fruitful 
of good. It has been very pleasant, and whilst the 
claims of homes, so far away, render our departure 
necessary, we shall leave with regret. 



SOUTH AUSTRALIA. Ill 

On the 22nd of January, Bro. Coop will sail for 
England in the " Garonne," of the Orient Line, leav- 
ing Bro. Exley to labor here a little while longer. 

T. Coop, H. Exley. 

Adelaide, South Australia, Jan. 20, 1881. 



LETTER X. 



Our last letter was posted to you just before Bro. 
Coop went on board the Garonne, of the splendid 
Orient Line of steamships. Bro. Santo, myself, and 
a few others, went down to the Semaphore to see him 
embark. We saw him safely on board, and then our 
little steamer turned away, and, owing to the prox- 
imity of another ship, we lost sight of him almost in 
a moment — Bro. Coop entering upon his long voy- 
age, and myself to return to Adelaide, to labor for 
two Lord's days more, and then to embark for Mel- 
bourne, and thence to my far distant home, probably 
by way of Suez, Turin and London. 

Since the injury sustained in San Francisco, the 
journey through Palestine became more and more an 
undertaking it did not seem prudent to enter upon ; 
and so on this account, together with other important 
matters, with unspeakable reluctance I gave it up. 
Well, notwithstanding that, my face is "steadily set 
towards" the New Jerusalem and the painless, sor- 
rowless land ; and so I joyfully sing — 

Yonder 's my hcuse and portion fair; 
My treasure and my heart are there, 
And my abiding home. 
(112) 



TASMANIA. 113 

Returning to Adelaide, I spent two more Lord's 
days there, and preached about five more discourses. 

On Monday, January 31, in company with Bro. 
Santo, I left Adelaide, embarking on board the 
Claude Hamilton, for Melbourne, and a more com- 
fortless voyage could hardly have been. The decks 
were literally impassable, from their being covered 
with the company and material of Cole's American 
Circus. 

I spent four more Lord's days in Melbourne, 
preaching in some seven different places. The num- 
ber of churches in Melbourne and suburbs, all of 
which are really a part of this great city, is a splendid 
testimony to the energy and untiring perseverance 
and self-sacrifice of our brethren here. If there* is 
anything to be compared with it in either Great 
Britain or the United States, I have never heard of 
it. I will endeavor to give a few items, which I 
trust will be of real interest to all churches, and help 
to stimulate them to love and good works. 

There are some seven churches in the city and im- 
mediate outskirts, besides many others at short dis- 
tances. Five of the seven churches in the city 
occupy their own church buildings, which are about 
$36,000 in value, and possess a seating capacity for 
about 3,000 people. They all have flourishing Sun- 
day-schools, with over a thousand scholars, and a 
proportionate number of teachers. Four of the 
churches employ an evangelist each, all the time — 
Brethren Haley, Bates, Colburne and Yates. 



114 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

The church meeting lately in the Unity Hall, have 
rented the large and very handsome church edifice 
called the John Knox Church, formerly occupied by 
the Presbyterians. This church, considered by some 
to be too narrow, is one from which broader churches 
may learn divine lessons in many directions. It is 
the mother of all the rest, if I am rightly advised. It 
has no evangelist at present, but is seeking to obtain 
one. It paid about $15.00 per week towards the ex- 
penses of the Sunday evening services in the Music 
Academy. It sustained an evangelist at Footscray. 
Its care for its poor and sick, I believe, has no par- 
allel amongst the brethren, so far as known to me. It 
is very strict on the communion question, has no or- 
gan, and in church worship has the open platform, 
but under the presidency of men of sound wisdom 
and judgment; and it is foremost in assisting the good 
work in other places. It is a church with a large 
heart and an open hand. The Lord grant it a very 
great future. Bro. Haley preached at the opening of 
the new premises, and had a fine audience. Every 
church in all the colonies, no matter whether it has an 
evangelist or not, meets every Lord's day to break 
bread. This is universal, without a single exception. 

Before leaving Melbourne, accompanied by Bro. 
Santo, quite a number of us rode out to a little coun- 
try village called Broad Meadows, where we have a 
little church of faithful, earnest and pious disciples. 
Out of their very moderate means, they have just 
completed a very nice little place of worship. Our 



TASMANIA. 115 

visit was a real treat to them and to us. The social 
tea-meeting was a success, and the after-meeting, with 
Bro. Santo in the chair, gave joy and gladness to all, 
and will not be very soon forgotten. The country 
around Broad Meadows is like a bit of Nebraska — 
only not so good. The public houses, on the high- 
way-side in the country, are so many as to compel 
observation. Nothing but a very large and con- 
stantly moving population can give them more than 
a very moderate support. 

Before leaving Melbourne, I was again called upon 
to preach for Bro. Haley, and selected for my sub- 
ject, " The Final Resurrection." After showing the 
possibility, probability, certainty, agency and extent, 
in order to impress upon the minds of all how easy it 
is for Him who is the Resurrection and the Life, to 
bring out of these earthly, natural bodies, bodies 
incorruptible, immortal and spiritual, I made use of 
an imaginary handful of common garden soil as a nat- 
ural body, and then, after apparently holding it up 
and crumbling it to dust, held up a magnificent 
bunch of flowers, furnished me by Bro. and Sister 
Da vies. I spoke of that as but the spiritual body, 
brought forth from the formless dust, and asked, 
How had the Great Architect built up that? How 
had the Great Artist painted thatf How had the 
Great Chemist perfumed that f And emphasized the 
thought that He who could transform the dust of the 
ground by the kiss of the sun — and the mysterious 
forces of earth and air — into such unspeakable 



116 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

beauty, could be at no loss in the Great Day of 
Resurrection, to bring forth from these already beau- 
tiful natural bodies of ours, bodies glorious, power- 
ful, immortal, incorruptible and spiritual. The im- 
pression made will last all through this life. This 
was my last discourse in Melbourne, save that I lec- 
tured once, on Milton, Cromwell and their times. 

On Tuesday, March 1, I embarked on board the 
Mangana, for Hobart, being persuaded by the breth- 
ren to visit the church there for six weeks, in connec- 
tion with the opening of a new church building. For 
once, the sea trip of some twenty-four hours, from 
Melbourne to entering the river Tamar, Tasmania, 
was enjoyable, the sea being calm and smooth. We 
have land in sight most of the time as we cross Bass' 
Strait. Little is seen save birds and porpoises, and 
now and then an albatross with wide- spread wings, 
ten feet from tip to tip, balancing itself as it swiftly 
skims over the restless waters — sailing away in the 
distance, or circling 'round about, as if in sport, then 
returning to the ship, and passing it with the swiftness 
of an arrow, albeit we are going from ten to twelve 
miles an hour! Gannets, or the Solan goose, are 
seen riding fearlessly on the waters. They are about 
the size of a common goose, but with a much greater 
stretch of wing. Besides, almost countless numbers 
of mutton-birds are seen skimming the sea in the dis- 
tance. The flight of these birds, or some other, 
which go in vast numbers, and so near to the surface 
of the water, has more than once led to the convic- 



TASMANIA. 117 

tion that the beholder was really looking upon the 
movements of the sea-serpent. 

Entering the river Tamar, a splendid stream, we 
have a river journey of forty miles through very fine 
scenery, until we reach the city of Launceston. In 
Tasmania, the counties, cities and rivers, are nearly 
all named after places and rivers in England. It 
is a matter for never-ceasing wonder how, in these 
far-off regions, all the cities, without exception, have 
put up such a large number of such large, solid 
and beautiful public buildings of all kinds, as are 
to be seen in these colonies. Here there are the 
counties of Dorset and Devon, a Cornwall, Dor- 
chester, Exeter, Ilfracombe and Launceston, at the 
head of the Tamar. The Great Colony of Victoria 
and the city of Melbourne were founded by explorers 
from Launceston in 1835. Launceston has some 10,- 
000 inhabitants, and for these it has erected thirteen 
large, solid and handsome churches. It has also a 
fine Town Hall, with organ to match. All the streets 
and side-paths are good. Among its public build- 
ings and institutions it boasts a Workman's Club. It 
provides not only a well-stocked library and a table 
well supplied with papers, but amusements also. It 
is managed entirely by the artisans themselves. It 
has a lecture-hall, piano, reading-room — a billiard- 
room, bagatelle-room, and others also. Chess and 
draughts are favorite games, as also skittles. Smoking 
is allowed everywhere, except in the rooms devoted to 
the library and reading. 



118 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

It is nearly eighty years since Tasmania was num- 
bered among the British Colonies, but it does not yet 
count more than about 120,000 inhabitants. Hobart 
is the capital city, with about 25,000 people. It 
is built oil the river Derwent, and for beauty of situ- 
ation may fairly challenge at least all the colonies put 
together. It is surrounded with magnificent moun- 
tains, the principal of which is Mt. Wellington^ about 
4,200 feet above the sea. The purple mist which 
covers " it like a beautiful veil, is a never-ceasing 
delight to look upon. Bro. Carr, who is remem- 
bered, and esteemed and loved for his work's sake 
here, and Bro. Gore, with others, have had the rich 
pleasure of toiling to its summit, from which, I am 
told, one of the most glorious of visions of mountain, 
valley, city and sea, is to be seen. I am not equal to 
the ascent, and so feast my love of the grand and 
beautiful, by looking to the hights to which I can not 
ascend. The climate of Tasmania is one of the finest 
in the world, and the death-rate, at least amongst 
children, is less than almost anywhere else in the 
world. The river is filled with vessels of all sorts, 
and quite an amount of business is done here in Tin, 
which is found and worked in large quantities; and 
also in the precious metals. Farm interests are not 
in the most flouishing condition here. The popula- 
tion of the colony is only as stated above, not more 
than 120,000. Yet they possess nearly 2,000,000 
sheep; of cattle, 130,000 head, and 25,000 horses, and 
about 40,000 pigs. The quantity of wool exported 



TASMANIA. 119 

in 1879- ? 80, was 8,333,726 pounds — value, $2,250,- 
000. In 1879, there was gold found to the amount 
of $1,200,000. The amount of tin found is at the 
rate of $1,000,000 per year. Splendid fruits of many 
kinds are exported in large quantities, for so small a 
population, and all the small grains, which are of 
very fine quality. 

Education is compulsory^ at ages ranging from 
seven to fourteen years, and is unsectarian in char- 
acter, and large encouragement is given to the higher 
education of all who care to possess it, by a system of 
exhibitions at the best private schools, and by annual 
examinations for the degree of Associate of Arts, 
under the direction of the Council of Education. 
Two scholarships, of a thousand dollars each, tenable 
for four years at a , British University, are awarded 
annually by the Council of Associates pf Arts, on 
passing a prescribed examination. The land, however, 
seems to be hampered by unwise restrictions, and from 
which, at present, we in the Ear AVest are free. There 
is, without fair question, however, a great future 
before Tasmania, and all these Australian colonies. 

One of the saddest of all the facts connected 
with this Island of Tasmania, is the complete ex- 
tinction of the native tribes — not one being now 
alive! William Lannae, the last man, and Truga- 
nini, the last woman, are both dead. In this letter, 
however, I can say nothing concerning the native 
races,' but promise another as soon as I can find the 
time to write, which probably will not be until I can 



120 A TRIP ABOUND THE WORLD. 

once more embark for the home that seems such a 
long way off. I will fill up the remainder of my 
space by a short account of my visit to this city of 
Hobart, where I am at the present writing. Arriv- 
ing here on the 2nd of March last, in the evening, I 
was met by Bros. Smith and White, and conducted to 
very comfortable apartments. 

The brethren here are about 120, all of the hard- 
working class, with a few of the business community 
amongst them. The energy, self-sacrifice and abound- 
ing faith of these brethren, if imitated by all our 
brethren, would carry victory at all points. They 
have just completed a very substantial brick church, 
with stone facings, plain, but very neat, and capable 
of seating 400 persons. It fell to my lot to open this 
church building for Christian worship on Lord's day, 
the 6th of March. The audiences were large, and 
apparently deeply interested. On Tuesday following, 
we had a public Tea Meeting, at which more than 
300 persons sat down ; the place was beautifully fes- 
tooned with ivy, ferns and flowers, with a large num- 
ber of flowering plants tastefully arranged on stands, 
and which were kindly furnished by various friends. 
The Tea, singing by the choir of young brethren and 
sisters, with the various addresses, made a most en- 
joyable evening. The bj-ethren here are close com- 
munion, bat not heresy hunters. They preach the 
gospel, using the talent they have in the church, have 
had but little evangelistic help, have the mutual 
teaching, doing the best they can, and even though 



TASMANIA. 121 

they have been a long time without evangelistic help, 
they have never omitted to break bread in the morn- 
ing, or preach the gospel in the evening as best they 
could. They have had no small burden of difficul- 
ties to bear from various causes, but they have strug- 
gled on to something like a position from which they 
may move on to victory. It is almost the only church 
of our brethren in the Island, and no finer field could 
the American Board of Missions select than this. In 
about one year the cause in Hobart would be self- 
supporting — that is, if the preacher were reasonable 
in his requirements, and this he would be sure to be, 
if a true missionary spirit filled his heart. 

At the opening of our first evening meeting, a 
most untoward event took place, throwing a heavy 
gloom over the church. Scarcely had the first hymn 
been announced, when a large, fleshy lady fell sudden- 
ly sick, and by the time she was lifted out of the meet- 
ing-house, into the porch, she was dead. On the 
second Lord's day, at nearly the close of the evening 
service, another lady was carried out in a dangerous 
condition, but she fortunately rallied again in a short 
time. These two events filled us all with a good de- 
gree of fear. 

During the five weeks I have labored here — and I 
came not knowing even one person in the church or 
city — it has been my unspeakable gladness to lead 
down into the waters of baptism eleven persons, and 
a spirit of inquiry has been awakened in others. Bro. 
Moysey, kindly given up by the church at Chelten- 



122 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

ham, Victoria, is here to succeed me. He has come 
for three months, so that the work may have some one 
to carry it on. Bro. Moysey is an able man, and is 
much beloved and esteemed here for his work's sake. 
The church at Cheltenham not only gives up Bro. 
Moysey to come here, but, with rare self-sacrifice and 
loving devotion to the Lord Jesus, also pays him just 
the same as if he were still laboring for them, the 
churches of Melbourne finding from its local breth- 
ren supplies to fill his place. Here is a grand way in 
which in many places amongst us at home, real mis- 
sionary work can be done. May some such work be 
largely done for his name. I came here a stranger, 
but that mysterious power which is in the gospel, has 
made me feel so much at home, has linked me to so 
muny brethren and sisters, that whilst home tugs hard 
at the heart, it is hard to leave, and I feel a heavy 
sorrow. Since coming here, I have been the kindly 
and even tenderly cared-for guest of Bro. and Sister 
Bradley and their gentle daughter.' Of all such, in 
view of their work of faith and labor of love, it may 
be most truly said, that "they are redeemed unto 
God." I have worked, since coming here, almost 
without intermission, but believe, that I leave here, 
physically, a stronger man. 

I have no space to tell of the beauties of the Fern 
Tree Bower, some five miles distant from Hobart, and 
situated at the foot of the monarch Mount Welling- 
ton. Through the kind courtesy of Bro. Speakman, 
I was taken by his daughters (the youngest of whom, 



TASMANIA, 123 

Miss Sarah Speakman, I have baptized) to see it. 
Strange indeed are the growths of these far-away 
lands; and a few leaves of the Fern Tree I bring 
away with me as mementoes of my delightful visit. 

The river Derwent is really an arm of the sea, and 
can afford ample anchorage-room for half the fleets of 
the world. A trip in the little steamer to Kangaroo 
Point, and a stroll on the beach, listening to " what 
the waves are saying," is wonderfully refreshing, after 
weeks of almost ceaseless toil. 

At Hobart, also, as in nearly every city we have 
seen, there are splendid public gardens, and perfectly 
free to the public; also a very extensive Public 
Library, in which the visitor has nothing to do but 
take down from the shelves any volume he desires, sit 
and read at his leisure, and replace it himself, or leave 
it for the Librarian to replace. If there is any vol- 
ume desired which the visitor can not find, the court- 
eous Librarian will at once get it for him. Alongside 
the library-rooms there is also a large reading-room, 
and the best papers and quarterlies and monthlies in 
the world lie on the tables. Reading-rooms and 
Library are always well attended by both ladies and 
gentlemen. In addition to these there is also a large 
Parliamentary Library, of some 8,000 volumes of 
choicest selection. This also is free. Into this I 
often went, hunting up items of interest concerning 
the now extinct native races. Hobart also has a very 
fine Museum. I think I can safely say that in these 
directions, in this out-of-the-way corner of the world, 



124 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

larger privileges were within my reach during the six 
weeks of my visit, than ever fell within my reach in 
twenty years' residence in the West. 

On Saturday morning, at 8 o'clock, April 16th, I 
bade adieu to Hobart, and waving good-bye to friends 
known only for a short time, but not to be forgotten 
again, our train moved oif, and in six hours I was 
once more in Launceston. _ Embarking on board the 
Mangana, on Lord's day morning, at 8 o'clock, after 
an exceedingly stormy and distressing voyage of 
twenty-four hours, I am once more safely in Mel- 
bourne, but too late to obtain a berth on the Orient, 
which sails to-morrow for London. Visiting Bro. 
Haley, I had the pleasure of seeing for the first time 
Bro. Gore, who has just arrived from America, and is 
looking quite well. Through the courtesy of Mr. 
Posisti, the member for Richmond in the Victorian 
Parliament, I was shown all over the houses of Par- 
liament and the very extensive library connected with 
them, and then conducted to the roof of the build- 
ings, from which one of the most extensive views of 
the city and far distant country is obtained. The 
buildings themselves are so extensive and so magnifi- 
cent, that to describe them is utterly beyond my 
power. Arriving in Melbourne too late to secure a 
berth, I have consented to go, at the urgent desire 
and request of Bro. Haley, up to Sydney, New South 
Wales, to help the brethren there for two months, be- 
fore embarking for home; that is, if the brethren 
there desire my help when I get there. They have 



TASMANIA. 125 

urgently solicited Bro. Haley to send them some 
one, and so I am about to go and visit this other 
great colony. Concerning New South Wales and the 
churches, I will write (D. v.) in due season. 

A letter has just reached Bro. Haley from Bro. 
Coop, posted at Cairo. He was quite well, and, from 
what he says, had a most interesting time on the voy- 
age, preaching several times and organizing a de- 
bating society, the subject for debate being, " The 
Colonies of Australia, or the United States of Amer- 
ica — which are the most desirable fields for those 
who are seeking for new homes?" Of all this you 
will hear in due time, perhaps even before you re- 
ceive this. 

I will only further say in this letter that, the Lord 
willing, I shall stay not longer than eight weeks 
in Sydney, and then embark for home, going around 
by way of Suez, London and New York, and, if 
prospered on the journey, reach home about the 
middle of August, resting a day or two at Davenport, 
Long Grove, and West Liberty, Iowa, on the road. 

Henry Exley. 

Melbourne, Australia, April 13, 1881. 



LETTEE XI. 

THE' NATIVE TASMANIANS. 

Leaving Tasmania before I could find time to 
write out a few items concerning the native races, I 
now shall try to do so. One of my first questions, 
after seating myself in the cars, when going to Ho- 
bart, was about the native Tasmanians, and my sur- 
prise was great indeed, when told that the last one 
of the entire race, Truganini, a woman, was dead, 
having died but some five years ago. 

When the island was discovered, in 1642, Nov. 

24th, by Abel Jans Tasman, the natives, whilst never 

very numerous, yet numbered, it is supposed, about 

7,000, of all the tribes together. As I stood by the 

bedside of an old settler, near eighty years of age, 

and one who had been in the country more than fifty 

years, I asked him to tell me how the natives were 

treated by the white men; and as he slowly shook his 

dying head, he very mournfully said, "Very bad; oh, 

very bad I" Whilst it is fresh in my thoughts, let 

me say that this old man, whom it fell to my lot to 

consign to the grave, and one of the most trustful and 

triumphant of Christians, seems to me a far more 

wonderful case of long abstinence than that of Dr. 

Tanner. For eight weeks before his death he rarely 
(126) 



THE NATIVE TASMANIANS. 127 

took any sustenance whatever; but for the last thirty 
days of his life he was known to take but two spoon- 
fuls of rice, two spoonfuls of beef tea, and twice the 
yolk of an egg in a little wine, and which his stom- 
ach rejected. A little water and wine was all he took 
for at least twenty -eight days, and for fully thirty 
days prior to that he rarely took anything. There is 
no doubt about this, as I questioned closely the two 
or three friends who were his nurses. His great age 
and long abstinence seem to me a marvel by the side 
of which Dr. Tanner's fast does not look an unreason- 
able thing, or at all to be questioned as to its being 
honestly carried out. 

David Collins, Esq., for a long time the Judge 
Advocate of New South Wales, was the first Governor 
of this beautiful island of Tasmania. He was present 
with his father at the battle of Bunker Hill, and 
there witnessed that event which was accepted by all 
Europe as the sign that the American colonies were 
lost to the British Crown. He proclaimed the do- 
minion of Great Britain over this island, and thus 
announced the first day of a second and rapidly grow- 
ing great empire, in the place of the one he had wit- 
nessed as lost. He married an American lady, and 
died in 1810. 

Society in Tasmania in that early time was not very 
choice. In 1802-3, there were at one point 400 male 
prisoners (for then it was a penal settlement), and but 
fwelve free settlers, three married women, six un- 
• married, six children, and forty marines. Out of such 



128 a TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

a condition of things as this, a large amount of the 
cruel slaughter of the natives seems to have certainly 
grown. The morality of the time may be estimated 
in a measure from the following: The first wedding 
published by the Tasmanian Press, reads thus: " On 
Monday, the 26th ult., R. C. Burrows to Elizabeth 
Tucker, both late of Norfolk Island. They had co- 
habited together for fourteen years, thus verifying the 
old adage, i better late than never/ " The very ex- 
cellent highway from Launceston to Hobart, 130 
miles in length, was constructed by convicts. Thirty- 
three years ago there were not less than 28,459 con- 
victs on the island. One of these, a man of gigantic 
stature, ran off, intending somehow to go to China. 
This man, whose name was Buckley, with another, 
wandered for months in the mountains, suffering great 
misery, where he found a tribe of natives, and lived 
with them thirty-three years, conforming to all their 
barbarous customs. When found, he had forgotten 
his own language, was dressed in a kangaroo skin, 
and armed with spears. Another proof of the degra- 
dation of a white man, coming into close relations 
with the savage, when that white man is himself but 
partially educated, and at the same time utterly sur- 
rounded with barbarism. His own measure of civil- 
ization seems to have been completely swallowed up 
in their barbarism, except that he helped to give to 
his countrymen, at a later date, a friendly reception 
amongst the natives. He was still living in 1852. 
The first settlement was made in 1803, and by such 



THE NATIVE TASMANIANS. 129 

a class of persons, almost all convicts, that it is only 
too readily conceivable how the poor native would 
fare at the hands of the white savages escaping from 
convict discipline. Sitting in the Parliamentary Li- 
brary, and reading of the doings of some of these, 
it made me feel as if to smite these miscreants with 
the fiercest lightnings would be but small retaliation. 
In the words of Prescott, when speaking of Las 
Casas' " Short Account of the Destruction of the 
Indians:" "It is a tale of woe. Every line of the 
work may be said to be written in blood." Mr. Mel- 
ville, in his work on Van Dieman's Land, says : 
" Were it possible to record and detail the murders 
committed upon these poor, harmless creatures, it 
would make the reader's blood run cold at the bare 
recital." 

Mr. Backhouse, another writer, and a benevolent 
gentleman, living' at that time, says of the outrages 
practiced upon them, " That they were such as to re- 
move any wonder at the determination of these in- 
jured people to drive from their land a race of men 
among whom were persons guilty of such deeds." 

Dr. Dixon, the Episcopalian Bishop of Tasmania, 
says : " There are many such on record, which make 
us blush for humanity when we read them, and forbid 
us to wonder that the maddened savages' indiscrim- 
inate fury should not only have refused to recognize 
the distinction between friend and foe, but have 
taught him to regard each white man as an intruding 

enemy." 
9 



130 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

Count Strezdeck, in his work on missions, p. 360, 
says, what may be applied with equal truth to Tas- 
mania as well as to the Dutch at Cape Colony : " The 
Christianity which was offered the natives was strip- 
ped of its charity, and the civilization embraced no 
recognition of his rights or property. They therefore 
rejected both." 

So far as I have been able to make out, and I 
searched- in the Parliamentary Library a good deal, 
the whole race of Tasmanians seem to have been 
completely blotted out of existence, with scarcely any 
trace of Christianity attaching to them. 

One of the most remarkable of facts connected 
with the black race of Tasmania, is this : that though 
the native women had been and were most cruelly 
ill-treated by the whites, the male aborigines, though 
ready to inflict death by the spear, always abstained 
from violating the person of the white woman. The 
author of "The Last of the Tasmanians" says: "In 
all the incursions made by the blacks into the settle- 
ments, it has never been known that one white wo- 
man has been violated by them. The nearest ap- 
proach to that crime has been done by half-civilized 
natives, who invariably became the greatest ruffians in 
the war. Not until they had become more degraded 
than they originally, were, by learning the vices of 
the whites, could they be guilty of the atrocities 
which they afterwards committed." 

An old convict servant of the author just named, 
said to his master : " They fought well. I admire 



THE NATIVE TASMANIANS. 131 

their pluck. They knew they were the weaker, but 
they felt also that they were the injured, and they 
sought revenge against many odds. They were brave 
fellows, and I would ha^e done the same." Scenes 
have been witnessed on this Island of Tasmania and 
deeds done very much like those which the Dutch en- 
acted in the early settlements of New York and Long 
Island, when the Indians rose up to revenge the cruel 
treachery and slaughter inflicted on them, and carried 
a fierce war into every Dutch settlement in the region. 
When Captian Cook saw the natives of Tasmania in 
1777, they were quite naked, wore no ornaments, they 
were quite black, and not disagreeable looking ; had 
beautiful teeth, good eyes, but were very dirty. They 
were of full average hight, very sinewy and wiry, and 
when fire-arms were first shown them, they mani- 
fested neither curiosity nor fear. No canoes were 
ever seen among them. They bore a certain re- 
semblance to the negro, whilst the Australian had 
often the appearance of a European. They were 
somewhat shorter in stature than the European, but 
when young, heavier in proportion to age. One girl 
at eleven years of age weighed 102 lbs., and another, 
at eight years old,, eighty-six lbs. The average of 
European children, as compared with these, is as 
sixty to eighty-six, and seventy-eight to 102. When 
first discovered they showed but little of that ferocity 
and vindictiveness which afterwards so characterized 
them. They were rather timid and distrustful at 
first, with a marked indifference and lack of curi- 



132 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

osity. All ideas as to their origin and destiny seem 
to have been erased from their minds. But it ap- 
pears that their language is indicative of considerable 
strength, copiousness and mental power and activity. 
Their social relations were characterized by the ab- 
sence rather of what is venerable and lovely, than by 
the presence of what is dark and revolting. Polyg- 
amy, to some extent, seems to have prevailed among 
them (but some doubt this), and the condition of the 
women was abject enough. 

From all that can be gathered now, it seems quite 
clear that when the whites first settled in Tasmania, 
the natives were mild, diffident, willing to be friendly, 
and rather afraid of the invaders of their territory. 
But when the convicts who had served their time be- 
gan to be let loose, and others escaped from confine- 
ment, and those who had "tickets of leave" began to 
steal the wives and daughters, and to kill the hus- 
bands and fathers, then they became ferocious, and 
attacked the settlers wherever they found them. If 
cunning and something approaching to treachery had 
not been employed against them, many of them 
would have been found living in their forest homes 
to-day. They were slaughtered, often that room might 
be made for the sheep and cattle ! Then the few that 
remained were forcibly deported (like the red men of 
the West have often been) to an Island in Bass 
Strait, where, scantily supplied with what, to them, 
were necessaries of life, they lingered awhile, and, 
pining for their homes on the mainland, which was 



THE NATIVE TASMANIANS. 133 

just visible across the Strait on a clear day, they died. 
Others of them were subjected to as cruel, wanton, 
and merciless slaughter as ever were any of the 
Indians of the West. Sitting and reading these 
things in the Parliamentary Library, the natural man 
flames out, and the cry almost escapes, calling for 
vengeance on the wrong-doers. 

The Tasmanian had but little affection for his wife, 
and in the hour of parturition she was left alone with 
another woman, and in a few hours had to follow her 
tribe as best she could, with her child hung on her 
back in a Kangaroo skin. If the child required 
nourishment, the breast was thrust up to the shoulder 
to the child, and this custom accounts for the fact that 
the breasts became disproportionately long. If the 
child was permitted to live, it was treated with great 
care, but very often the children were destroyed ; but 
this barbarous custom was not common with them, 
when first discovered, but the result of continual suf- 
fering inflicted by the whites! The young men were 
initiated into the state of manhood, by being severely 
cut with some sharp instrument on the breasts, shoul- 
ders and thighs, and this was done by an aged female; 
but though the flesh was made to turn back like a 
crimped fish, they were in the highest glee during the 
whole operation. They had no dogs until they were 
introduced by the whites, when they kept numbers of 
them around their encampments, the pups being often 
suckled by the women ! When the men were absent 
on a hunting expedition, the women would sing a 



134 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

song addressed to a deity who presided over the day, 
for protection for their husbands and themselves, and 
to bring them back in safety, and accompanying with 
gracefulness of action the song which they poured 
forth in strains by no means inharmonious. Mr. 
Da vies, in the Tasmanian Journal of Science, said 
that " the sweetness of their notes, and which were 
delivered in prett} 7 just cadences and excellent time, 
made a harmony to which the most refined ear might 
listen with pleasure." They turned away from fat 
with loathing and nausea. A party being removed 
to Flinder's Island, the captain had some soup made 
for them. They looked upon it quietly, and then 
skimmed off the fat, and put it on their hair, thinking 
it was made for that purpose, but they would not 
drink the soup. They even rejected bread with dis- 
gust, if it had been cut with a butter-knife. They 
seem to have left behind them no trace of their oc- 
cupancy of the Island, beyond the large heaps of 
shells on the beaches, the remains of their feasts. 
These shell-mounds have been thus made, and not, as 
has been too often supposed, by the change in the 
relative positions of the land and sea. Heaps of 
shells, and mounds several feet in thickness and many 
yards in breadth, abound along all the shores, and on 
every indentation on all the coast, but always thus 
produced. They had stone implements, and obtained 
fire by rubbing two pieces of wood briskly together, 
but have no tradition as to how they obtained the 
knowledge. They are said by high authority to be 



THE NATIVE TASMANIANS. 185 

nearer in likeness to the whites, and not to the worst 
amongst them, than the so-called civilized peoples of 
the cities would be willing to admit. 

The cause of the animosity which at last could not 
be extinguished except by the extermination of the 
blacks, seems to have been this: A small stone house 
had been built for a gardener, who had just begun his 
work in cultivating around it, when one day, as he 
was working, he was surprised by the appearance of a 
number of natives coming toward him; at which he 
ran off and told Lieut. Moore, who commanded a 
party of the 102nd regiment, stationed there. He at 
once drew up his men to resist the expected attack. 
On the approach of the natives, the soldiers were 
ordered to fire upon them. The execution this volley 
did among them, and their ignorance of the nature of 
firearms, terrified them to such a degree that they 
fled without attempting the slightest defense. From 
that moment a deep-rooted hatred of the strangers 
possessed them, which seems never to have been put 
down. Moore was drunk. 

The Hobart Town Gazette of 1824, says of them: 
" The sable natives are the most peaceable creatures 
in the world." I read such stories of cruelty and 
enormous wickedness, as made me almost wish that 
the whole white race had been exterminated. 

Dr. Ross says that, in 1823, when he went to one 
point, he saw a man sitting on a stump, nearly starved 
to death. He had only three days before stolen a black 
woman, and chained her to a log with a bullock- 



136 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

chain, dressing her in a fine linen shirt, the only one 
he had. This he had done in hopes of taming her. 
She somehow contrived to slip the chain, and escaped. 
Not long after he was found speared to death. An- 
other case illustrative of the almost incredible wick- 
edness of some of these early settlers is told by the 
author of the " Last of the Tasmanians," as follows : 
Two men went out shooting birds, when a number of 
natives, happening to see them, fled away. A woman, 
very far advanced in pregnancy, being unable to run 
with the rest, climbed up a tree (and they were 
very expert at climbing). She broke down branches 
around her for concealment, but she had been ob- 
served by the sportsmen. One of these proposed to 
shoot her, but the other objected. The first onej 
however, dropped behind and fired at the unfortunate 
creature. A fearful scream was heard, and the next 
moment a new-born child fell out of the tree ! That 
very day the wife and child of this monster, when 
crossing the Derwent, in a small boat, were upset by 
a sudden squall, and both were drowned, and he him- 
self came to a very violent death not long after. 
Their sufferings w T ere of such a character that Dr. 
Coke, a gifted writer on the West Indies, says that 
" the author who records their miseries will almost be 
deemed incredible; and whilst his narrative will be 
read with astonishment, it will perhaps be associated 
w T ith the marvelous, and consigned to the shelves of 
romance." 

In 1849 the only survivors of the race were twelve 



THE NATIVE TASMANIANS. 137 

men and twenty-three women. The government re- 
moved them to comfortable quarters near Hobart, 
and placed them under the superintendence of a 
physician. William Lannae, the last man of the 
Tasmanian race, died March 2nd, 1869. One year 
before that, when the Duke of Edinburgh visited 
Tasmania ; he was dressed in a blue suit, with a gold 
lace band around his cap. He was introduced to the 
Duke, with whom he walked proudly on the grounds 
of the Regatta, as if he felt sure that only himself 
and the Duke were in possession of royal blood ! 
Soon after this, he went on a whaling expedition, and 
on his return, being paid the wages due, some sixty 
dollars, having an ungovernable propensity for beer, 
he drank himself to death. On the above date, when 
attempting to dress himself, he fell back on his bed — 
dead. He was only thirty -four years of age when he 
died. His funeral was attended by a large concourse 
of people. Before the body was finally consigned to 
the tomb, it was discovered that the head had been 
taken, and what became of it has not been satisfac- 
torily made known to the public. The skin had been 
taken off it, and drawn over the face of another per- 
son who had died about -the same time, and whose 
head, with Lannae's face, was made to do duty for 
poor Lannae's missing head. An eminent physician 
was suspended by Government, under strong pre- 
sumptive evidence that he had had something to do 
with the mutilation. So passed away the last man of a 
most cruelly ill-treated race. The rest of the few 



138 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

under Government care, although there were twelve 
men and twenty -three women, all passed away having 
no children. Mr. James Bos wick, F. R. G. S., au- 
thor of " The Last of the Tasmanians," says, in refer- 
ence to this : " It seems that to other causes than 
violence and disease must be assigned the extinction 
of these children of nature, when coming into contact 
with the civilized European." What these other 
causes may be, I do not know, but I heard a strange- 
ly significant remark made by an old settler, as to 
what they possibly might be. 

The last woman, Truganini, or Sea Weed, died 
May 8th, 1876, aged sixty years, so that there is not 
now a single native Tasmanian living. After no 
small inquiry, I could never find out that more than 
just a few persons were every brought under the in- 
fluence of the gospel. The Bishop of Tasmania, in 
his account of them, shows, I think, a more meagre 
result that way, than ever came to pass with any 
tribe of men whom it was sought to civilize and 
Christianize. I was shown two skulls of aborigines, 
their size being some three or four inches -less than 
the average European's. When a lighted candle was 
introduced into the male skull, the organs of de- 
structiveness, secretiveness and amativeness were 
seen to be almost transparent. All the higher facul- 
ties seem to have been very small. Such, at least, 
was the reading of this skull by a phrenologist to me. 
But reading the sad facts of their cruel fate, one can 
hardly help feeling and seeing that, in their few good 



THE NATIVE TASMANIANS. 139 

qualities, they often excelled their more highly gifted 
destroyers, and in their bad or indifferent ones were 
far oftener exceeded, all the readings of phrenology 
to the contrary notwithstanding. I spoke with many 
who had personally known Truganini, and all spoke 
of her as a bright, cheerful, intelligent woman. They 
are all gone now, and the whole truth will not be 
known until that time when "the earth shall no more 
cover her slain." H. Exley. 

Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, May 13, 1881. 



LETTER XII. 

NEW SOUTH WALES. — SYDNEY. 

Instead of being this moment in London, or at 
home, I am here in Newtown, Sydney, New South 
Wales. What may be the Providence and meaning 
of this, to me, entirely unsought, undesired, and 
strange journey, from first to last, I know not, but 
hope and feel assured that it has a divine significance 
in more directions than one. 

Writing from Hobart, Tasmania, in plenty of time, 
under ordinary circumstances, to secure a berth on 
the " Orient " for London, I found that, owing to a 
sudden change in the time of sailing of the mail-boat 
from Launceston, by the Postmaster General, I could 
not secure a berth, every one being engaged before I 
got to Melbourne. Bro. Haley had just received a 
very pressing letter for evangelistic help from this 
far-off region, and as I would not leave until two 
more weeks passed away, it was urged upon me to go 
to Newtown, Sydney, for two months. Leaving Mel- 
bourne on Wednesday, the 13th of April, in the Ly« 
ee-moon, after a two days' very stormy, but to me not 
unpleasant, voyage, 1 arrived in Sydney at 5 p. M., 
Friday. Owing to the letter posted at Melbourne 

not getting to hand until two hours after my arrival, 
(140) 



NEW SOUTH WALES. 141 

no one expected me. All the hotels were full, and, 
after trying some five or six, I gave it up and took a 
"'bus" for Newtown, not knowing either a brother, 
a name, or an address. Arriving in Newtown, at my 
first inquiry for " Christians," I was directed to the 
house of one of them, and in a few minutes received 
a kindly welcome from Bro. J. Kingsbury, Jr. Not, 
however, until 10 p. M., did I find a resting-place, 
weary and foot-sore, at the home of Bro. Thomas 
Hawkins, one of the elders of the church at New- 
town, with whom, and his excellent family, I made 
my home. 

The whole distance from the open sea to the city, 
the bay and harbor are very fine in their exceedingly 
picturesque beauty, being skirted on either side by 
bold, high bluffs, broken at short intervals by beauti- 
ful inlets and smaller bays — the bluffs at two or 
three points being crowned with forts and their 
accompanying instruments of destruction. Nature 
seems to have done everything necessary to make 
Sydney harbor and bay at once one of the safest and 
most capacious and beautiful in the world. The city 
itself, with everything that can be desired in the 
way of situation, configuration of country and sea- 
board, is a spoiled city. With buildings, both public 
and private, banks, post-office, town-hall, cathedrals, 
churches, government offices, and business buildings, 
public library and museum, which no less a word 
than "magnificent" will describe, and on a scale 
which excites both wonder and astonishment, it is 



142 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

none the less a spoiled city. Its streets are so nar- 
row, and often crooked, that the finest buildings are 
defrauded of their proper effect by their surroundings. 
It seems to be the city of fine buildings, narrow 
streets, public houses, and dogs. It exceeds, I think, 
all the places I was ever in for the number of dogs to 
be seen, and evidently well kept, for they are a good- 
tempered host. 

Sydney, with its suburbs, is a vast city, and covers 
a very large area. Near to where I am writing, and 
about three miles from the city proper, is a closed 
cemetery, in which lie buried about 18,000. When 
opened, it seems to have been thought that the city 
would never push itself out so far ; but now a large 
population surrounds it, and the suburbs stretch out 
for miles beyond it. The same mistake and crime 
against the future welfare of this vast city is being 
committed in all the out-lying suburbs, of narrow 
streets. The streets are crowded with people, intent 
on business or pleasure. The cabs, omnibuses, and 
steam-car tramways, do an enormous business. Ninety 
trains of passenger cars leave and return every day, 
engaged in suburban traffic, about six cars to a train, 
all made on our American model, but nearly all made 
here in Sydney. 

On a recent week there were taken 182,589 single 
fares on the three steam-tramway lines in the city 
itself, all of which belong to and are worked by the 
government, and with great advantage to the revenue. 
In addition to all this, there is a vast omnibus service, 



NEW SOUTH WALES. US 

and running to every corner of the distant suburbs, 
at the rate of about two cents per mile. 

As an indication of the commercial importance of 
Sydney, I find that there visited the wharfs of this 
city in 1879 — 1,268,377 tons in shipping. The min- 
eral wealth of the Colony is also very great, but con- 
sidered as but in the infancy of its development as 
yet. Up to 1879, about 280 tons of gold had been 
taken from the mines, in value more than $168,000,- 
000; the tin, iron and copper swell it up to more 
than $250,000,000. The entire product of gold in 
the colonies of New Zealand, Tasmania, Victoria, 
Queensland and New South Wales, reaches about 
2,200 tons. The output of coal, in this colony alone, 
in 1879, was 1,620,497 tons. Its tin area is 5,440,- 
000 acres ; its iron area, 1,400 square miles, and of 
copper, 6,713 square miles. 

I visited the Agricultural Exhibition which has 
just closed here ; the exhibitors were very few, not 
nearly so many as may be seen at almost any of our 
less pretentious Western Exhibitions of a similar 
character. The exhibits, however, were all of a very 
superior character. Amongst " Reapers and Self- 
Binders," the " Wood's," of New York State, took 
the first prize over McCormick's. The exhibits of 
cattle and horses, sheep and swine, were all of a 
quality of which it may be said that they were almost 
faultless. I attended the succeeding sale of Short- 
horns and other high-priced cattle, and the prices 
realized were in every case high. The cattle-owners 



144 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

and stockmen of this vast colony are fully awake to 
the signs and demands of the times, and are improv- 
ing their herds up to the highest point of perfection 
as rapidly as they can. The competition between 
them and our Western producers will be keen — but 
all will reap the benefit, in a much better article than 
is often now to be obtained. 

One company here — the Orange Company — has 
already entered upon arrangements by which it will 
be enabled to send 50,000 carcasses of beef, , each 
averaging 800 pounds of meat, in the most thoroughly 
perfect condition, as far any present known appliances 
can secure that, to the London market, yearly. Be- 
sides these 40,000,000 pounds of beef, they will also 
be able to send 28,000,000 pounds of mutton. Vast 
as this amount is, it will hardly furnish two pounds 
per head, per annum, to the English population, so 
there is an immense field and market to be occupied 
and supplied there. Australian meat will command 
the first place and the best prices in England, unless 
similar conditions are brought about by our farmers 
and stockmen. In the slaughtering of the animals, 
the most scientific methods are employed, by which 
death is instantaneous, and the blood most completely 
drained away. The company has also consulted the 
leading butchers in England, as to the condition of 
meat which best suits the very best English markets, 
and are bending all their energies to secure that. 

They have some thousands of acres of fine grass 
lands attached to their establishments, so that all the 



NEW SOUTH WALES. 145 

cattle, on arriving, are at once put into pasture, 
remaining there for two or more weeks, and both 
resting and improving all the time. Not one animal 
is driven a long distance or brought a long distance 
on the cars, and then, in its weary and fretted condi- 
tion, slaughtered, to the great injury of the meat, and 
consumer also. They are slaughtered when at their 
best. These are the conditions which will secure the 
first place in the market. Another thing, also of 
prime importance: only the choicest animals are sent 
to slaughter for the English market. The govern- 
ment has put down a side line of rails to their estab- 
lishment, and has entered into an arrangement by 
which it agrees to supply them as the need shall be 
manifested, with refrigerating cars made on the best 
and most approved plans, so that the meat, when 
frozen by the company, will be, at the time of ship- 
ment, put into chilled cars, from which it will be 
transferred in specially-constructed lighters to the 
freezing-rooms on the steamer which is to convey it 
to England. The same company sees to it that so 
much of the meat as belongs to various owners, is put 
up carefully in thoroughly clean canvas bags, bearing 
the brands of their owners. They also are beginning 
what will soon assume large proportions : wool-wash- 
ing, fell-mongering and glue-making. There are in 
this colony more than 37,000 stockholders, owning 
360,000 horses, 2,914,210 horned cattle, and 29,043,- 
211 sheep, at the last stock-taking, in 1879. 

The wool of this colony is said to hold a high place 
10 



146 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

in all the wool markets in the world. My brother, 
who is quite a connoisseur of wools, has entered into 
a contract in this colony to classify the wool, and 
superintend the shearing of some 90,000 sheep, and 
the washing of the wool. 

It is now the middle of June, and they call it 
winter. It is certainly now and then a little chilly, 
and gets nearly down to freezing, but the fields are 
gloriously green, and the orange trees are loaded with 
golden yellow fruit, and the hedge-rows are beautiful 
with flowers of the tall native Box. I do n't know if 
they have such a thing as winter here, unless it is as 
everywhere else — the " winter of discontent/' I was 
visiting a sick lady two days ago, who has been in 
this colony fifty years, who told me she had never 
seen snow in all that time. 

The public parks, gardens, libraries and museums, 
are all on a scale which excite astonishment. I 
visited the Public Free Library — by no means a 
small building, but it was evident, at a glance, that it 
was too small for the accommodation of its readers. 
Every table was crowded. The government has voted 
the means for the erection of an entirely new build- 
ing, and on a scale, and of such architectural beauty, 
as to be quite abreast with the best institutions of its 
kind. There is also a free public lending library in 
connection with it, and the literature in demand is 
fairly represented in the issues from it to the public, 
in the following items, which I have obtained by a 
personal application to the very courteous Librarian, 



NEW SOUTH WALES. ' 147 

Mr. W. W. Palmer, who at once, on my making 
known my wishes, took down the books, and copied 
out for me himself the sum totals, since the present 
year opened, as follows: Number of visitors, 16,650; 
number of days open, 144; books issued: Natural 
Philosophy and Science, 1938. History, Chronology, 
Antiquities and Mythology, 1471. Biography and 
Correspondence, 1660. Geography, Topography, Voy- 
ages and Travels, 2509. Jurisprudence, 253. Men- 
tal and Moral Philosophy, 611. Poetry and the 
Drama, 528. Miscellaneous, 12,071. Specifications 
of Patents, 1. Total, 21,042. Taking all in all, 
there seems to be a very creditable taste for the best 
literature amongst the great body of artisans in this 
city. Midway between the city and the point where 
I am laboring, there is a very large enclosure of land 
laid out in fine taste, in which, at various distances, 
are situated the State University and the three col- 
leges of the Episcopalians, Presbyterians and Roman 
Catholics, all large and very beautiful buildings. On 
Lord's days large numbers of people congregate at 
various points on the grounds, and earnest preachers 
of various denominations are there to preach that 
which they believe to be the gospel. Our brethren 
are not in any way behindhand in this good work. 
Bros. Nelson and Goode, of the Newtown Church, are 
here, preaching every Lord's day, when the weather 
permits, and it is very rarely the case that it does 
not; and Bro. Picton and others are found in the 
same work in the Domain, really the Central Park of 



148 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

Sydney. Some of the brethren also preach in the 
suburbs every Lord's day evening. In addition to 
the above colleges, the Wesleyans and the Congrega- 
tionalists have each their own college in the suburbs, 
and all, I believe, are well patronized, except the last. 
Some earnest Christian men, who have formed 
themselves into an Aborigines Protection Society, are 
doing something both to protect and Christianize the 
black native population in the interior, and to care 
for the few that are found lingering in and .around 
Sydney. The efforts to Christianize them are meet- 
ing with some real success, but the efforts are not at 
all commensurate with the needs of the case. Those 
of the natives I have seen are really not bad speci- 
mens of physical build, but they are nearly black. 
They are reported to be very expert in learning the 
various handicrafts. As trackers they fully rival the 
clear-eyed red man of the West. Those who have 
lived among them and near them for many years, 
assure me that they are intelligent, peaceable and 
kind, but have often been treated even with cruelty. 
Bro. W. Newell, a gentleman whom it has been my 
joy to baptize, and who has lived among them for 
years, confirms all this. He also tells me he has seen 
them throw the boomerang in such a way, and with 
such force and skill, that whilst it was thrown a con- 
siderable distance forward, it would corns darting and 
bounding back and far behind the place from where it 
was thrown, and even strike off the upper tier of 
bricks from a house-chimney. I have also been in- 



NEW SOUTH WALES. 149 

formed that they throw the spear with such consum- 
mate skill and precision that, when in hunting they 
have come into the presence of game, they form a 
large circle around it, at a considerable distance, and 
every man throws his spear at the same instant, and 
so that the points always strike into the ground, with 
the upper ends converging to a center over the head 
of the game, thus literally encaging it. 

The poisoned arrows used all over these South Sea 
lands are a terrible weapon. Through the kindness 
of Bro. Newell, I have received two of these arrows, 
together with two non-poisoned ones, and a stone- 
headed spear, but very sharp. The arrows are poi- 
soned by being thrust into a corpse that is far ad- 
vanced in corruption. It is rarely the case that even 
a slight injury with one of these does not prove fatal. 
I also received four fine boat-paddles made from the 
wood of the cocoa-nut tree, and which are so made as 
to be used as spears in case of a naval encounter. 
These were all taken from the natives of the Island 
of Rubianno, one of the Solomon group, by whom, 
some few months ago, Lieut. Bower and several men 
of the " Sand-Fly/' were so treacherously massacred, 
whilst the whole of the crew were on shore, except a 
few. These weapons were taken by the men sent to 
punish then! for their crime, and through the courtesy 
of Bro. Newell they have come into my possession. 
During our stay at Wellington, New Zealand, we saw 
the Sand Fly, still bearing the marks of their savage 
fury. . 



150 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

We have not many churches in~New South Wales. 
The principal ones are the churches of Sydney and 
Newtown. The church in Sydney has the good 
providence of having for its evangelist, Bro. John 
Strang, formerly of Glasgow, Scotland, a man loved 
and esteemed by all who know him. I have spoken 
for him twice: once, by request, on "The Resurrec- 
tion of Jesus the Christ: Did it ever take place ?" 
The tea T meeting is an institution here in Sydney, as 
in all the Colonies, and it was my pleasure to, be an 
invited guest to the one recently held in the Sydney 
chapel. The membership is about 150, and at least 
100 sat down to tea, although it was a wet night, 
when nearly $200 was given or promised, every 
shilling of which would be paid to effect some needed 
repairs and alterations. They seem to have good 
hopes for the future; but Sydney is by no means an 
easy field. They have" a Sunday-school of about 
seventy or more scholars, with a sufficient staff of 
teachers. 

The Newtown church has a membership of about 
170. It has two elders, four deacons, about 100 
scholars in the Sunday-school, and eleven teachers. 
Bro. Hawkins, one of the elders, not only superin- 
tends the Sunday-school, but also teaches a Bible- 
class one evening in the week; he does his full share 
of the teaching, and in the absence of an evangelist 
will be found ready to do his share of preaching also. 
Being a man engaged in an exacting business all the 
week, his labor for the church is not a small matter. 



NEW SOUTH WALES. 151 

During the time I labored for this church, I took 
charge of the Bible-class, and found it a most pleasant 
and profitable work, as I spent nearly the whole day 
in preparing for the evening lesson. 

The two churches own buildings of quite $10,000 
value between them, and the churches will seat about 
350 or 400 each. Dr. Kingsbury is the other elder 
associated with Bro. Hawkins, an earnest, able man, 
with a nerve as unflinching as steel, and a heart as 
tender as a woman's. 

When a boy, he was the subject of one of those 
strange providences, which arrest attention, and which 
on ordinary grounds seem so difficult to understand. 
He and his brother being out one day together, they 
found a brace of dueling-pistols, but rusted from ex- 
posure. Elated with their treasure-trove, they took 
them home, and soon began to fight mock-duels. 
Day after day, and week after week, in the house and 
everywhere 'round, they made sport in that way. This 
was done hundreds of times. One day the boys got 
up into the topmost room of the house, with a sky- 
light opening on to the roof of the house, and the 
window of it happened to be open. They played at 
their old dueling game again, snapping off their rusty 
weapons, with caps, until they were tired, when one 
of them observing the open sky-light said, " Now for 
a go through the window/' and snapped his pistol off 
once more ; but this time there was a loud report, and 
a ball was discharged, which passed through the roof 
and inside boards of the next house. This led to a 



152 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

thorough examination of the other pistol, and it also 
was found to contain a ball. The pistols had been 
snapped off with caps many hundreds of times by the 
boys at each other, when this " Now for a go through 
the window" revealed the fact that they had been 
playing with death all the time, and only by one of 
those mysterious providences which take place so 
often, was this last snapping-off of the pistol turned 
away from the breast of the brother and aimed 
through the open sky-light. 

Bro. Kingsbury is getting far on now, on the road 
to the valley of the shadow, but he seems as if the 
light of the city came streaming upon him, and with 
him it may be said, "At evening time there is light" 

Since coming here my meetings have been really 
good, and the interest apparently of a very serious 
nature. It has been my privilege, under God, to 
help to reap after the sowing of others. Thirteen 
have confessed the Saviour's name since I began my 
labors amongst them, ten of whom I have baptized; 
the rest will be baptized in a few days, and probably 
more also. One Lord's day I went to the large sub- 
urban town of Parramatta,. and preached for the 
Baptists and their congregation, accompanied by Bro. 
Picton, who goes -there once in two weeks. They 
seem to be drawing nearer to Apostolic lines, and 
hope is entertained that an entire return will be the 
result. In the afternoon of the same Lord's day I 
went to the Poor-house, and preached to a large com- 
pany of the aged sick, lame and blind. It was good 




THE UNIVERSITY. 




TK^l MUSEUM, 



NEW SOUTH WALES. 153 

to be there. One poor fellow, blind for the past ten 
years, sat on his bed, with a face almost illuminated, 
as if the light in fading from the eyes had passed into 
his countenance. It was a beautiful testimony to the 
ennobling and redeeming power of the gospel, to see 
some of the young members of the Baptist Church 
there (and they visit this and other similar institutions 
every Lord's day afternoon), to preach Jesus and to 
speak comforting words to the aged and sick. If the 
young men and women of our churches, in cities 
where this kind of work can be done, were to set 
about it, what a blessed influence would be created. I 
felt it a privilege thus to be permitted to try and 
press some cup of consolation to lips parched with the 
agony of many of this world's dark Gethsemanes. 
On one Lord's day morning I visited a little "church 
in the house" of Bro. Stimpson, at Fairfield, also in 
the suburbs, where for the past twenty years, with 
hardly an exception, but when the weather has ren- 
dered it impossible, the few brethren and sisters have 
met to break the commemorative loaf. It is about as 
isolated a place as we often have in the West, but the 
church does not fail to remember its Lord. 

In one hour the mail for San Francisco closes, and 
I must also close this letter, to be in time. This is 
the last letter from this region, as I have engaged a 
berth on the John Elder for London, and expect to 
leave here at 5 p. M., June 24. In eight days I shall 
be on the sea, and, going via Melbourne and Adelaide, 
expect to see once more Bros. Haley, Bates, Gore and 



154 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

others. When this reaches the Standard 1 shall be, 
I suppose, on the Red Sea, and by the middle of Sep- 
tember I trust to be once more in my own far West- 
ern home. The more I see of these Colonies, the 
more does it become evident that they are destined to 
fill a high place in the affairs of this world. I am 
profoundly thankful I have been permitted to see 
them in part, and that my visit and Bro. Coop's will 
not be in vain. It seem to me a great misfortune 
that all the churches of Christ in America, Great 
Britain, and these Colonies, have not a more intimate 
acquaintance with each other, for mutual encourage- 
ment and common work. 

I have now done for this time, but will write once 
more, if anything of sufficient interest calls for it. 
Till then I lay down my pen, and now go to other 
work again for the few days which yet remain. 

EL Exley. 

Newtowx, Sydney, New South Wales, June 16, 1881. 



LETTER XIII. 

DARKNESS GIVING WAY TO LIGHT. 

It was the doctrine of Dr. Thomas, long years ago, 
if my memory is correct, that Christianity was the 
religion of civilized man only, and that we must wait 
for civilization to become the pioneer for the religion 
of the cross. How greatly the leaven of this piti- 
less doctrine, taught by many, may have retarded the 
missionary spirit amongst us, is not easy to say; but 
certain it is, the logic of facts teaches quite another 
thing. Over all these South Sea lands it has been the 
experience of all who have sought to begin from the 
side of trying to civilize them first, that the only way 
in which civilization could come to the savage was to 
first Christianize him, and then his civilization speedi- 
ly followed, and that without any special effort. Rev. 
J. Ingliss, himself a missionary, and entitled to speak 
with authority, said years ago: "Indeed, it is clear 
as day, that it is only so far as Christianity is ex- 
tended that commercial and scientific objects can be 
attained in these islands. It is only Christianity that 
brings security to life and property, and develops the 
industry of the natives and the resources of the 
islands." To look upon the pictures, placed side by 

side, of the Christianized native and the unchristian- 

(155) 



156 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

ized one, at once shows the elevating power of the 
gospel. 

In 1810, or even later, there was not in air the 
Pacific islands a single Polynesian who could read a 
single word ; nor was there a single printed word in 
any one of their languages. Fifty years after that, 
and what do we see? There is seen sailing, on her 
way to England, the missionary barque, the John 
Williams, and carrying on board the Rev. G. Turner, 
with a corrected copy of the entire Bible, with 
marginal references, for a second edition, to be printed 
in the Samoan lauguage ; the Rev. G. Gill, with a 
corrected copy of the entire Raratonga Bible, for a 
third edition, also with marginal references; and had 
it not been for the illness of another missionary, the 
Rev. A. Chisholm would have been on the same 
barque, with a corrected copy of the entire Bible, also 
with marginal references, for a third edition, in the 
Tahitian language; whilst the Rev. J. Ingliss, from 
whose pen I have gleaned these facts, was on the 
same vessel, with a complete translation of the whole 
New Testament, to be printed in the Aneityam lan- 
guage. Since man wandered away from God, as he 
well asks : if Was there any single ship ever freighted 
with three translations of the entire Bible, and a 
fourth, of the New Testament, to be printed?" What 
a wonderful commentary on the prediction of Isaiah : 
" He shall not fail, nor .be discouraged, till He have 
set judgment in the earth, and the isles shall wait for 
his law." What a wealth of love and compassion 



DARKNESS GIVING WAY. 157 

was here laid at the Redeemer's feet, outweighing any 
gift of thousands of silver and gold, that so in some 
measure He might " see of the travail of his soul and 
be satisfied. " Besides these, many other books, in 
important departments of knowledge, have been 
translated and printed in Polynesian tongues, and 
what is wonderful in itself, every word of these lan- 
guages had, in great measure, to be caught as it 
floated rapidly, and often indistinctly, from the lips of 
the speaker, and the meaning of the word, and the 
whole structure of the language in which it had a 
place, mastered, before the missionary could begin to 
teach at all. 

The world has no grander or nobler heroes on all 
its manifold rolls of honor, than such men as these. 
Their motto was : " We can not stoop too low to 
save." I heard one of our own brethren in New 
Zealand, Bro. Caleb Wallis, make the remark, during 
conversation with myself and Bro. Coop, " I believe 
in going down into the gutter to save men." The man 
who does not, has small business to think that he is 
an imitator of the Son of God. The almost incredible 
ignorance, filth, cruelty, superstition and cannibalism, 
with all that the first chapter of Romans alleges of 
the heathen world of that age, which met the mission- 
ary everywhere, and through which he had to toil, 
shut off from all society, an exile from home and all 
that makes home so precious, in constant peril of his 
life — all this demanded men and women for the work 
than whom heaven itself could not find nobler. 



158 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

Sixty years ago the shipwrecked sailor or passenger, 
thrown on these shores, had not the least security for 
his life longer than the time he could hide himself. 

Even after large progress had been made on many 
of the islands, the missionary himself has fallen a 
martyr in his work, to the savage revenge of the na- 
tives, in retaliation for outrages inflicted on them by 
traders, who, whether they believed that Christianity 
was only for civilized man or not, did not believe in 
it for themselves. 

The ignorance met with by the missionaries, is 
amusing, as well as sad. Rev. S. Taplin, missionary 
in South Australia, says that when he went among 
them the natives told him that twenty years before, 
when they for the first time saw a white man on 
horseback, they thought that the horse was the white 
man's mother, because he was carried on its back ; 
and another tribe, the first time they saw pack-bul- 
locks, thought they were the white fellows' wives, 
because they carried the baggage. Their ideas con- 
cerning the origin of their different languages, are 
just as nonsensical. They attribute them to the death 
of an ill-tempered old woman, who, when living, 
used to go about and, with a stick she always carried, 
scatter the fires around which others were sleeping. 
Men and women came from different places to rejoice 
over her death, and then fell to eating the body, when 
each company, as in succession they shared in the 
feast, at once began speaking in another and different 
tongue from all the rest. Once, when speaking to an 



DARKLESS GIVING WAY. 159 

old woman, he said, " We shall die, and so will you." 
She replied, ""We shall dief Then let ns eat plenty 
of flour." So said the Greek and Roman : " Let us 
eat and drink, for to-morrow we die." 

The kind of work the missionary has had tcrdo in 
New Zealand and Australia, and to do which work he 
bent all his soul, was and is a very different thing 
from going on a mission to England, or other civil- 
ized land, where he is not only abundantly well sus- 
tained, but surrounded by friends and peace, safety 
and civilization, and with the means of a varied 
culture within his reach but seldom or never within 
his reach at home. To talk about self-sacrifice in 
their case, by the side of missions in New Zealand, or 
other of the vast number of the Polynesian isles, 
is an abuse of terms. In comparison with this work, 
theirs is nothing more than a real pleasure trip, and is 
as unlike the work to be done in these far-off lands, as 
is the rest and safety, and home comfort, and luxury, 
and manifold blessings, vvhich fill the most favored 
homes to-day, to the hunger and cold, and suffering 
and struggles of the forefathers of the Revolution. 

The kind of work the missionary had to do — be- 
sides shutting himself off from all civilization nearly, 
and living in the midst of peril all the time, but 
intensely alive and active to catch every floating 
word and unravel its meaning — was to learn the 
great lesson of the Master in all its fullness of mean- 
ing ; and at times, in very deed, both the missionary 
and his gentle but courageous helpmeet, girded them- 



160 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

selves with towels, to do more than wash the dis- 
ciples' feet! One of the new converts of Mr. Taplin, 
a fine young man, having set himself to wash off the 
grease and red ochre, which it had perhaps taken 
months to plaster on, succeeded pretty well with his 
body ; but when it came to his head, he failed utterly, 
and went seeking for help to the mission house. Mrs. 
Taplin at once, with her servant girl, set to work, 
and getting a tub of hot water, and soap, scrubbed 
till the stuff was cleaned away, and his really fine, 
curly locks shone again in their original brightness. 
The annals of missions abound in such work. Some- 
times the congregations gathered into the mission 
stations are dressed out in the strangest and most gro- 
tesque style. Mark Twain never imagined anything 
more ridiculous than in mission stations is only real- 
est fact. Some go dressed in the common opossum 
rug ; others, in a double blanket, gathered on a stout 
string, and hung around the neck like a cloak ; others, 
with nothing on but a blue shirt, and others again 
with only a woman's skirt or petticoat, with the waist 
of it around the neck, and one arm through a hole at 
the side. Mr. Taplin tells that, one Lord's day, a 
tall savage walked into the mission school, and grave- 
ly sat down, with nothing on at all except a high- 
crowned hat and a waistcoat! 

To undertake the redemption of such as these, 
surely demands the noblest, the bravest, and the most 
Christ-loving, soul-loving, and self-sacrificing men 
and women the churches have in them. Where 



DARKNESS GIVING WAY. 161 

others would become digusted, then wholly discour- 
aged, and then ignominiously leave the work because 
they feel their own respectability insulted — or that 
the work is too unclean for them to touch it- — these 
see in all these dreadful signs, so many additional 
reasons to seek to save. Nor are such required in the 
work, in any place on earth, whose sympathies with 
the redeeming Christ, and the Christ-work that needs 
to be done, are so small — as I heard of one expressing 
it — that they " would rather live and die slaves in 
their native land," than be anything possible within 
fche gift of other lands. All such as these have no 
business to leave their homes. The work of missions 
requires men and women so consecrated to Christ that 
they will go with their lives in their hands, as the 
common saying has it, and go to live and die in it, 
but not to give it up. 

The Episcopalian Church of England, with all her 
faults, has given some notable examples of what a 
missionary should be, both in New Zealand and over 
a large number of other islands. Bishop Selwyn and 
Bishop Coleridge Patteson, son of the Bight Hon. 
Judge Patteson, whose family has given some of the 
most accomplished judges to the English bench, and 
who on his mother's side was very nearly related to 
Samuel Taylor Coleridge — these men, reared in the 
lap of luxury and refinement, yet gave themselves up 
to the work of missions in a manner and with a spirit 
impossible to any not entirely under the masterhood 

of the gospel. 
11 



162 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

Bishop Patteson, after having given up all within 
his reach at home, and when, in the midst of the most 
trying work, he had taken fair measure of all, wrote, 
and in the tenderest words, thanked his father for 
giving him up to the work. He said : ". It has made 
me more of a man; I am in my right place." He was 
content to live in one large room, built of the kauri 
pine, with no furniture in it except a bedstead, a 
writing-desk and an old book-case; to clean out his 
own room, make his own bed, and to help clean away 
the things from the table after meals. Yet he was 
calm and happy, and though thoughts of home were 
constantly flitting before his mind, he wrote home : 
"I like the natives in the school very much. The 
regular wild, untamed fellow is not so pleasant at first. 
Dirty, always smoking, a mass of double blanket, his 
wigwam sort of place filthy, his food ditto; but then 
he is probably intelligent, and not insensible to the 
advantage of hearing about religion." Religious 
teaching is the very smallest part of the hard work 
that has to be done, and he writes : " and the difficulty 
is to do for them what parents have to do for their 
children, not only in assisting them, but descending to 
the smallest matters, washing; scrubbing, sweeping, 
and all the acts of personal cleanliness." He writes 
home and tells his friends that the missionary needs 
to be a carpenter, mason, butcher, and very much of 
a cook, as well as something of a glazier, and a 
tinker, to mend his own kettle and saucepan. In 
visiting, perhaps as many as eighty of the various 



DARKNESS GIVING WAY. 163 

islands, in company with Bishop Selwyn, it often 
happened that their little vessel could not get in 
shore, for the reef or the surf. When such was the 
case, they would simply take off their coats, and, tak- 
ing what tools they needed for work in their hands, 
plunge into the sea, and in peril of life in the sea and 
on the shore, swim to the land. 

Again writing to his father, he points out what 
kind of a man the missionary must be, so well that I 
place it here, that every missionary we have now, or 
may have, who shall read it, will, I hope, be taught 
by it, for there is abundant need for it : " The mission- 
ary must denationalize himself, and eliminate all that 
belongs to him as English, and not as Christian, and he 
himself not shrinking from the most repulsive offices, 
even to carrying out the dead silently at night, lest 
others should see and be alarmed." 

Bishop Selwyn would navigate his own vessel, 
steer it, if need be, live on the same food as his 
sailors, and lie on the floor of his cabin for weeks, 
that a sick native might have his bed, and he have 
the joy of restoring him to health and to his friends. 
Thus they toiled and lived, until at last Bishop Patte- 
son, going on shore on his errand of mercy, at Naka- 
pii, one of the Santa Cruz islands, was martyred in 
his work, when the villainy of white traders had just 
outraged the natives in abducting five of them away. 
This was as recently as 1871. His body was brought 
off from the shore immediately, wrapped in a native 
mat, with a palm leaf covering the breast. 



164 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

The first missionaries to New Zealand went there 
when it was a land of savages, feasting on human 
flesh, drinking human blood, and that for days to- 
gether. From the pen of one of these, I find the 
following: "Scenes like this We have often seen. My 
dear partner has been on the mission station, with the 
wives of other missionaries, when on one morning as 
many as eleven men have been murdered, cooked and 
eaten, within sight of the missionary house. T was 
in the midst of them alone (yet not alone, for God 
was with me to protect me) while the bodies and 
hatchets of the murderers were still wet with the 
blood of these slain, and while they were preparing 
ovens for the bodies of the victims. They danced 
round me, and when they had concluded their repast, 
I preached to them." " I have heard of as many as 
thirteen children being cooked in one oven made of 
heated stones." How marvelous the power of the 
gospel! Some of these became both humble Chris- 
tians and preachers of the gospel. Much more could 
I say, but these facts are enough. Heathen missions 
are calling upon us now for our share in the glorious 
work, and the question presses for answer : 

" Shall we whose gouIs are lighted 
With wisdom from on high, 
Shall we, to man benighted, 
The lamp of life deny?" 

But missions cost money. You who, at home, have 
all you have as the fruit of missions of a long past 



DARKNESS GIVING WAY. 165 

age, you are called upon to bring some offering, and 
lay it as your tribute at the feet of the Redeemer — 
some precious jewel wherewith to adorn the Re- 
deemer's, crown, and help to swell the "satisfaction" 
of that great heart which was broken on the cross. 
What shall it be? Don't forget that the Great 
Arbiter himself has stated it, the talent that is for- 
feited is the one that has been withheld. Amongst 
the " books opened" in that day, will be the Book of 
Missions — and the Book of the Church! 

Let none offer to go, let none be sent, but such as 
are ready, in the presence of the cross, to lay all at 
His feet. There is no romance in heathen missions : 
the work is stern and all self-sacrificing, from first to 
last. To lay it down because of the deep degradation 
of those it is sought to save, is evidence both of 
ignorance of the true spirit of missions, and of utter 
unfitness for the work. 

" For whoso loves the Lord aright" 
No soul of man can worthless mid. 
All will be precious in his sight, 
For Christ on all hath shined." 

The more utter the lostness of the heathen, the 
greater the need for that nobleness which " counts all 
things but loss," that Christ may have the " dominion 
from sea to sea, and from the rivers to the ends of the 
earth." The greater the difficulties, the more need to 
say with St. Xavier, Romanist though he was, when 
friends tried to dissuade him from undertaking mis- 



166 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

sionary work, by spreading before him the dangers to 
be encountered : 

" Hush you ! Close your dismal story. 
What to me are tempests wild? 
Heroes on their way to glory 
Mind not pastime for a child. 
Tis for souls of men I'm sailing! 
Blow ye winds, north, south, east, west. 
Though the storms be round me wailing, 
r l here '11 be calm within my breast." 

The glory to be won by those who go in the true 
spirit of missions, in the "ages to come," is only to 
be measured by the brightness of the firmament — of 
the stars, and of the. sun, and it shall endure forever. 

There are missionary crowns still to be w r on. Who 
will enter the lists to win? Who can reckon the 
fullness of the joy of those who have sent, forth labor- 
ers, and of the laborers who shall go, when in the 
great reaping-day, they both shall see that " their 
labor has not been in vain"? H. Exley. 



LETTEE XIV. 

OLDEST LANDS AND FORMS OF LIFE. 

Having now sailed over so many seas, and visited 
so many of these lands of the great Pacific, and 
having seen so much that is wonderful and beautiful 
also, it may not be amiss to group together a number 
of things in themselves of real interest, gathered 
from many sources — but all sources of highest worth* 
— for a better appreciation of what has been seen; 
and to put them within as small compass as may be. 

Strangers, indeed, we were, coming to these oldest 
of all lands, with but small idea of what they would 
be like, but perhaps, on that very account, the 
strangeness and newness of everything we saw 
" lent enchantment to the view." Until the gospel 
visited, and with its " light of life " lifted off at least 
some 'of the darkness, it was truly to be said of them 
all that they were lands 

" Where every prospect pleases, 
And only man is vile." 

As we sailed over these deep seas, in sight and 
alongside of, as Avell as visiting many of their shores, 

* For most of the foots in this, and the last letter, which did not come 
under personal observation, the authors quoted from are in every instance 
men of eminence, as ministers, missionaries, historians, etc. — H. e. 

(167) 



168 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

from San Francisco to New Zealand and Australia, 
we were constantly impressed with the idea that we 
were journeying in regions where nature appears at 
her best. Lofty mountains covered with forests, and 
lesser hills clothed in fadeless green, extinct vol- 
canoes, and towering peaks, often seeming to stretch 
themselves up to the sky, as seen from a distance at 
sea, and scarcely to be distinguished from the Avhite, 
fleecy clouds of heaven, as their snow-covered sum- 
mits mingled with them; castellated rocks rising up 
from the depths, and lifting their heads as if they 
were the appointed priests to offer up to heaven the 
gathered incense of earth and sea, reminded one of 
Coleridge's hymn to the sunrise in the vale of Cham- 
ouni, and his lofty address to Mont Blanc: 

Kise, oh ! ever rise ; 
Rise, like a cloud of incense from the enrth ! 
Thou kingly spirit, throned among the hills, 
Thou dread ambassador from earth to heaven. 
Great hierarch! tell thou the silent sky, 
And tell the stars and tell yon rising sun, 
Earth, with her ten thousand voices, praises God. 

The sea itself filled with the strangest and most 
antique forms of fish-life; the sky, wondrously clear 
by day, at night is suffused with a soft and universal 
glory, streaming from countless stars which stud it 
over all its vast expanse; the solemn depths all 
around us, and a silence in harmony with all that is 
grand in earth, sea and sky — one had but to forget 
for a moment that "the dark habitations of cruelty " 



OLDEST LANDS. 169 

were around us also, to imagine that we had reached 
almost to the gates of " Paradise Regained." 

The depth of all these seas, from San Francisco to 
Australia, whilst easily expressed in numbers, is 
almost beyond the power of the mind to grasp. 
From San Francisco to Honolulu, the average depth 
is about 12,000 feet; from the Sandwich Islands to 
New Zealand, about 18,000 feet, and from New Zea- 
land to Australia, 16,000 feet; so that these vast 
bodies of water rest upon, and some of these lands 
rise up above, one of the areas of, deepest depression 
in the world. 

New Zealand, rising from such a profound depth, is 
said to furnish in its vegetation, but more especially 
in its bird-life, the strongest claim to be considered 
the oldest of all lands above the face of the deep to- 
day ; and that it is not, as is frequently supposed, but 
the last remains of a continent, now submerged to 
such a depth. 

The bird-life of New 7 Zealand is said to carry us 
back to a time when as yet the sea rolled over where 
Great Britain now rises above its waters, and when 
the chalk of its southern area was not deposited. 

Active volcanic forces are still at work, and shocks 
of earthquakes are of frequent occurrence, one slight 
shock taking place while we were there. Over many 
parts of New Zealand, craters of volcanoes, both 
active and extinct, are found, with boiling lakes, 
mud-pools, boiling springs and sulphur deposits. The 
Waikato region is especially remarkable for its boil- 



170 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

ing lakes, mud-pools and springs, and for its magnifi- 
cent scenery, hardly to be surpassed by any in the 
world. It was our misfortune to be so limited in 
time that we could only hear of all this, and could 
not go to see. Volcanic action is so constant and 
powerful that, on the coast-line, upheavals and raised 
beaches are of frequent occurrence. Only lately, on 
one of the coasts, and for a considerable distance, 
both along the shore and out to .the sea, such, an un- 
usual commotion, with discoloration of the water, was 
seen, that captains of steamers gave it a wide berth. 
A vessel that was stranded on one of its coasts in 
1814, thirty -five years later was found 200 yards 
above high-water mark, and with a tree growing 
through the bottom. If scientific conjecture may be 
trusted, it is likely true that here man stands on the 
oldest surface of the globe above the waters of the 
deep; and is still surrounded by some of the most 
antique forms of bird-life, at least. 

It is an interesting fact that whilst the climate 
and general character of these islands are highly 
favorable to the existence of the serpent race, yet no 
snake of any kind is to be found in them. The same, 
it is said, is also true of the Sandwich Islands. Can 
there be something in the nature of active volcanic 
forces, and too strongly influential in the soil to 
allow of their existence? Their absence is taken as 
proof that New Zealand never formed a part of Aus- 
tralia, as some conjecture, as in that case some forms 
of serpent-life which abound in the latter country, 



OLDEST LANDS. 171 

would be found here. We were told by a gentleman 
at Dunedin, when talking about this peculiar feature, 
that at one time quite a large number of frogs had 
been imported, but that every one had died. We did 
not think of it in time to inquire if any, either 
of frogs or snakes, kept in museums or gardens, man- 
aged to escape the influence which has kept the coun- 
try clear of them all. 

Man himself does not seem to have lived on these 
islands beyond a few centuries back; not even the 
first comers — short, black-skinned, woolly-haired 
savages — some relics of whom are yet found in the 
Southern island. There was no lion, or tiger, or even 
wolf, in the forest, and no serpent in the glade, to 
molest him — his only foe was his brother savage. 
The tall, straight-haired, muscular Maorie, did not 
reach the islands until some time after him. They 
hunted the Moa (Dinomis elephantopus) , a bird with 
nothing whatever in the shape of wings, but round- 
bodied, with massive legs, and its head stretching 
sixteen feet above the ground. We saw one or two 
fossil specimens of this giant among birds, in the 
museum. There are still found ground-ovens, in 
which these first possessors of these islands prepared 
their feasts. In some of them, the large bones of 
these wingless birds are found, often partially burnt, 
and mingled with them the bones of human victims 
also — some of the bones of the birds seemingly so 
fresh, that they might have been living almost with- 
in the last half-century. Dr. Tristram, Canon of 



172 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

Durham, England, in a series of papers on these in- 
teresting matters, says that a few years ago he re- 
ceived a number of bones from one of these ground- 
ovens — bones of various birds, and amongst them 
bones of at least three young children. It almost 
makes one to tremble, as he thinks of the dreadful 
ages of darkness, cruelty and blood, which have over- 
shadowed all these fair lands, and from which many of 
them have not yet emerged. 

One fact, discovered some years ago, is considered 
pretty conclusive evidence that the Maorie made his 
advent into New Zealand before these giant birds, 
the Moa, had passed away. A Maorie skeleton was 
found- in a cave, in a sitting posture, holding in his 
hand an entire egg of the Moa, a small hole pierced 
in one end, and held just under the chin, supposed t© 
be placed there to afford him sustenance, on his way 
to or in the land of spirits. Rev. R. Taylor, said by 
Canon Tristram to be probably better acquainted with 
Maorie history and tradition than any other Euro- 
pean, collected many of the native songs, which were 
written out by the collector more than twenty years 
before colonization began, and which relate to the 
skill and prowess of the Maorie in hunting the gigan- 
tic Moa. In 1849, when Raupahara, a great native 
chief, was buried, the one solitary feather, said to be 
the last relic of the bird possessed by the tribe, was 
buried with him. 

The presence of the Maories docs not appear to 
date back beyond some six hundred years at most. 



OLDEST LANDS. 173 

Rev. R. Taylor says he perused the genealogy of one 
of their noble families, and it gave about twenty- 
seven generations from the time of their landing in 
New Zealand, and that they have even preserved the 
names of the canoes in which they arrived. Their 
legends tell how they left the Sandwich Islands, in a 
fleet of canoes, about 600 years since, but halting for 
some three generations on the road, at the Society or 
Friendly Islands, until the land became too strait for 
them, provisions were scanty, and a new emigration 
was compelled ; but taking with them various tropical 
plants, such as the sweet-potato, and which will not 
grow in. New Zealand without artificial cultivation. 
Their language is also said to be proof of their de- 
scent from tbe Sandwich Islanders. 

There are still here forms of life which in our 
Northern hemisphere are only found in a fossil state ; 
and so, whilst New Zealand is conjectured to be the 
oldest of all lands, and its forms of life the most 
ancient, it is also conjectured that Australia, with its 
wonderful tribes of Marsupials, its Saurians, serpents 
and strange fishes, stands next. 

Tasmania, only some twenty-four hours' sail from 
Australia, and separated by only a shallow sea, in its 
natural history is strictly ^ Australian, not having so 
much as one peculiar genus of birds different from 
Australia. Even the Emu, of which we saw -living 
specimens in the gardens of Melbourne and Adelaide, 
has but recently been exterminated in Tasmania, and 
it was identical with the Emu of South Australia. All 



174 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

this is taken to mean that, at some past time, Tas- 
mania formed a part of the Australian main-land. 

There are at least two ferocious wild animals pecu- 
liar to Tasmania — the Tasmanian tiger, or wild-cat, 
many of them still found inhabiting the mountains, 
and which stands almost as high as a greyhound ; 
this and the equally savage beast, the Tasmanian 
devil, are also Marsupials. We saw fine specimens 
of each in the Zoological Gardens at Melbourne. 
One of the brethren playfully said to me, when I was 
about to go to Tasmania, " Do n't you think you had 
better be careful in going there? You know that 
they have the devil there?" To whom I replied, "So 
long as they keep him safely in the Melbourne gar- 
dens, I need not fear him much." 

The Fern Trees, of both Tasmania and New Zea- 
land, are marvelous affairs. We saw many on the 
lands of Bro. C. Wall is. They grow up like any 
other tree; but all that we saw were at least from six 
to ten inches in diameter. At about six feet from the 
ground they put out scores of shoots, each one of 
which goes straight up, but clinging closely to the 
central stem, and then puts out long, beautiful fronds, 
stretching out for many feet, and forming a most de- 
lightful shade. In South Australia, the Fern Tree 
(Todea Africana) is often five to six feet in circum- 
ference. I saw many in Tasmania, probably very 
much more than 100 years old, and which, if lifted 
out of the ground, would weigh much more than 
2000 lbs. It is said they will bear transplanting, 



OLDEST LANDS. 175 

even the largest ones, to almost any temperate climate 
in the world. 

Tasmanian sea-coasts are especially rich in sea- 
weeds, not less than 300 varieties having been al- 
ready classified. Their forms) and almost endless 
variety in tints and colors, are, I think, if anything, 
more beautiful than any land weeds or mosses what- 
ever, They seem to say to us, 

" Call us not weeds, we are ocean's gay flowers, 

For delicate, beautiful, and bright-tinted are we; 
Not gently reared either in gardens or bowers, 
We are rocked by the storms, we are nursed in the sea." 

Passing from New Zealand and Tasmania to Aus- 
tralia, the strangest forms of animal life are found, 
the like of which are not found elsewhere in the 
world. Not less than 102 species of Marsupials are 
found, and three Monotremes. The Marsupials have 
not a single ally or representative elsewhere, save the 
solitary exception of the American opossum. The 
duck-billed platypus and the spiny ant-eater " stand 
utterly alone, separated by an unbridged chasm from 
every other quadruped." " Their intestinal parts, re- 
semble those of birds. They have no teeth, nor any- 
thing in the place of teeth ; no internal ears, no teats, 
no placenta, no Marsupial pouch, and have a merry- 
thought like a bird. They have, however, organs 
which secrete milk." All these are regarded as 
amongst the very first forms, or relics of the very 
first, of Mammalian life created on earth. 



176 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

The bone-caves of Australia have revealed the ex- 
istence, in times very far remote, of Marsupial lions 
and bears, which preyed on gigantic herbivorous 
kangaroos, one of which had a skull three feet in 
length and equal in size to that of the rhinoceros or 
hippopotamus, whilst the carnassial tooth of its en- 
emy was double the size of that of a modern lion. 

Kangaroos still abound, and in large numbers are 
often hunted down. During my stay in Sydney, I read 
in the papers of two great kangaroo hunts — in one 
of them, 200 horses, with their riders, some of them 
ladies,. took part in chasing down 500 kangaroos; and 
in the other, 100 horses, with their riders, hunted 
down 200 kangaroos. The largest of them weighed 
about 200 pounds each ; but some that we saw in the 
gardens, of quite that weight, seemed to leap, using, 
of course, only their hind legs and long tail, as if it 
was about as easy for them to do it as to nibble at 
the grass on which they were feeding. When alarmed 
and escaping from their pursuers, they will leap as 
much as fifteen feet at a bound, and keep it up for 
several miles, scarcely varying in the length of each 
leap, more than an inch or two. Hunted thus, it will 
not be long before they are very scarce. 

The bird-life of Australia is also unlike what is 
found anywhere else. Of its 630 species, not more 
than one-thirtieth occur elsewhere, not even in India/ 
a country so close at hand. 

Amongst the insects of South Australia, the white 
ant is a formidable pest. It builds its hill, often, to 



OLDEST LANDS. 177 

a hight of more than twenty-five feet, and from six 
to ten feet in diameter, and so strongly as to resist 
the heavy tropical rains ; the larger ones supposed to 
be some hundreds of years old. There are hundreds 
of thousands of such hills in the South Australian 
Colony. Nothing seems to resist its ravages, short of 
sheet-iron. Another curious insect, and very destruc- 
tive to the timber, is called the "borer " and is about 
the size of a common house-fly. On its head it 
carries a kind of auger, which, with considerable 
force, it strikes into the timber, and then perform- 
ing a series of rapid revolutions, perhaps a thousand 
in a minute, bores a hole as neatly as any carpenter 
could do it. 

Some of the trees of Australia will rival the giant 
trees of California. In Western Australia, and Tas- 
mania also, the Eucalyptus globulus reaches a hight of 
300 feet, and the Eucalyptus collosa, of Western 
Australia, 400 feet; whilst a fallen tree of the Euca- 
lyptus amygdalina, in the Dandenong Mountains, 
Victoria, measured 420 feet in length. 

We saw occasionally hedges of Cactus, and the 

flower crowning a stem at least twenty-five feet above 

the ground. We saw climbing plants, reaching to 

the tops of trees, and coiling round the branches, and 

grasping them with something like the grip of death ; 

and on other trees, enormous masses of parasitical 

growths, quite as much on single trees as would fill a 

wagon box, and growing at the point where the 

branch unites with the main stem, and apparently 
12 



178 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

without either roots or soil, with nothing but air, 
light and moisture. One of these especially attracted 
attention : its leaves were so large and broad and curi- 
ously formed, and so like the antlers of the deer, that 
it is called the "stag-horn fern." 

The snakes of Australia are numerous, and many 
of them very poisonous; and the waters on all the 
coasts abound in the most antique forms of fish-life. 
The octopus is often caught; but not of very large 
size. I saw three which had been just caught, their 
arms from one to three feet in length, and quite 
capable of drowning an incautious bather. "We used 
one as bait, when fishing, cutting it into small pieces, 
and we found it quite tough and leathery, even for a 
sharp knife. Sharks are very abundant in all these 
seas, and often of very large size. When standing 
with Bro. Thos. Magarey at the end of the jetty at 
Glenelg, two boys who were fishing with rod and 
line had caught over forty young sharks, and the 
evening before over thirty, each of them several 
inches long. Wherever we went, whether on land or 
on the sea, we were in the midst of wonders aquatic 
or terrestrial, which incessantly proclaimed — 

" Earth with her ten thousand voices praises God." 

Now that they have passed away from actual sight, 
many of the scenes through which we passed seem to 
have " sunk like gentle rain into the heart, and the 
memory of them abides as a very precious posses- 
sion." The quiet beauty of the fruitful field, the 



OLDEST LANDS. 179 

rugged grandeur of the snow-mantled, cloud-piercing 
mountain hight, the wild gloom of the rocky gorge, 
and the mysterious voice of the solemn sea, as it 
beats in ceaseless pulsations on the rocky shore; all 
alike proclaim that God is in all, and that a He made 
the sea, and the dry land also." 

As in thought we stand, again gazing at the four 
bright stars which form the Southern Cross, and be- 
neath whose glorious light all these strange lands 
have so long " sat in darkness," and have " dwelt in 
the shadow of death," we are made to long for the 
coming of the time when for all of them it shall be 
true to the uttermost : " Upon them hath the light 
shined," and that they have turned to "seek Him that 
maketh the seven stars and Orion, and turneth the 
shadow of death into the morning ;" so that when the 
King comes the second time, He shall be welcomed 
with the shouts of nations redeemed, and, as it were, 
carried in triumph to His universal throne, by ran- 
somed multitudes from these far-off "isles of the 
sea;" and then the ransomed earth and the sobbing 
sea shall alike share in the joy of creation delivered, 
and the redemption song shall be sung, u Now is 
come salvation ; now is come the kingdom of our 
God, and the power of His Christ, and He shall reign 
forever and forever." H. Exley. 



LETTER XV. 

THE GREAT AND WIDE SEA. 

Indian Ocean, ^ 
Lat. 32° 56' South, > July 7, 1881. 
Long. 111° 24' East, j 

As CAN be seen from date and place, I am once 
more on the bosom of the great deep. It is now 
thirteen days since our stately ship, the John Elder, 
of the Orient line of steamers, left Sydney, New 
South Wales, and for fully twelve days of that time 
it has been one unbroken storm, fierce head-winds 
prevailing all the time. Our vessel is one of the 
largest afloat, being 435 feet in length, and about 
forty-two in width of beam, and of far more than 
4,000 tons burthen, yet it is wonderful how easily 
this huge piece of naval architecture is lifted and 
tossed and rocked to and fro by the waves. Great 
waves, foam-crested, and traveling with a swiftness 
that is astonishing to behold, like regiments of white- 
helmeted war troopers in line of battle rushing to the 
charge, have unceasingly beaten upon us, as if de- 
termined that our journey should be as comfortless as 
possible. We are now, however, clear of the great 
Australian Bight and its storms, and have fairly 

entered upon the Indian Ocean, having sailed nearly 
(180) 



THE GREAT AND WIDE SEA. 181 

3,000 miles since leaving Sydney, and with a journey 
of some 10,000 miles yet before us. The visit of 
Bro. Coop and myself to these Colonies is now a 
thing of the past, but its memories will last on into 
the "world where all 

"Sweet friendships glow, 
Ceaselessly, forever." 

To myself, the journey, with all its providences, 
mercies, and precious friendships formed, and all its 
opportunities for preaching Christ, has been, and is 
to me, a wonderful thing, having never either desired 
it, or sought it in any way or manner. Its meaning 
the future will best reveal. I started on the long 
journey with the understanding that it might be a 
journey around the world ; and to carry out that pos- 
sibility I have preferred to return home via London, 
instead of San Francisco. 

At the earnest representations of Bros. Haley and 
Gore, whom I met in Melbourne, I was induced to 
visit Newtown, Sydney, to try and help the church 
there, which had just lost the services of Bro. Lewes, 
who had gone to Auckland, New Zealand. I am 
thankful and glad that I went. During the ten 
weeks I spent at Newtown, sixteen were led to put on 
Christ by a personal self-yielding to him, and in the 
way of his own appointing; others awakened, and a 
few were received by letter. The congregations from 
the first grew larger, until the church was almost 
filled. I am glad also to say that my leaving them 



182 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

was a deep regret to all. One little incident at the 
beginning of my visit seemed likely to terminate it 
before it had well begun. The report had preceded 
me that Bro. Exley was an Open Communionist ! Two 
or three good brethren waited upon me to ascertain if 
this was true. I at once told them that it was not 
true, and at the same time said I felt hurt that any 
calling themselves brethren should so misrepresent 
me, and that as I had not sought to come and labor 
amongst them, but was urged to come to them in 
their pressing need of help, I preferred to take the 
next ship and start for home, rather than to be sub- 
jected to any unpleasantness on that question. I told 
them frankly that, whilst I was not in any way a be- 
liever in the unimmersed breaking bread at the Lord's 
table, and had not once in all my life-time ever 
uttered a word at the Lord's table which could lead 
any one unbaptized to break bread, yet that I would 
not withdraw the bread or the cup from any known 
believer, but unbaptized, who, uninvited, took them 
unoffered as they passed along. This was abundantly 
satisfactory ; for whilst the brethren of Newtown seek 
earnestly to-be faithful to the Lord in all things, they 
are neither needlessly heresy-hunters nor believers in 
constructive treason. It is a good thing, when the 
"logic of the head" is not " heady," but wedded to 
that loving " logic of the heart " which " thinketh no 
evil," and refuses to push to an unrighteous conclu- 
sion the positions of others. The Newtown church 
has mastered this logic. When in England last, I 



THE GREAT AND WIDE SEA. 183 

was asked by two persons if, unbaptized, they could 
break bread ; to whom I answered that such was not 
"the law of the Lord Jesus. That is my position. I 
afterwards baptized them both. 

My stay in Newtown was rendered very pleasant. 
Several little excursions were organized, to either go 
a-fishing or to visit one or other of the many bays 
near the city. 

On one of our fishing trips, we caught a very rare 
kind of fish, the local name for which is " Box Fish." 
It was about fifteen inches long, and fully the same in 
girth, but completely armour-plated from just behind 
the head to within about two inches from the tail, 
which had thus perfect liberty of action in all its 
movements. When caught, the hard, bony substance 
was quite variegated in color, and the colors bright ; 
but by the time the fish was d.ead, all had faded to a 
dull brown. We also caught a large ray-fish, with its 
head the shape of that of an enormously large frog. 

On some of these excursions we gathered a little 
sea-w T eed, which really deserves the name of sea- 
flowers, so beautiful are their forms. The coast, all 
along the sea-line, is very rocky and broken, and the 
surges come tumbling in from the sea in long, rolling, 
great ridges of water, which, dashing high up the 
rocks, have chiseled and fretted them out till some of 
them are almost as beautiful as a cathedral's " long 
drawn aisle and fretted vault." 

On the 17th day of June, there came to me one of 
those days which come but once a year — a birth-day. 



184 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

Brother and Sister Bardsley, with characteristic hos- 
pitality and kindliness of heart, invited quite a little 
company to spend the evening with them in their sub- 
urban home, and to make the time a very pleasant 
one to me. In every home I received a most kindly 
welcome, and Brethren Kingsbury, Bardsley, Nelson, 
Goode, West and Evans, each had their little home 
tea-party, to put as much home sunshine into my life 
as they could. 

On the Wednesday evening prior to leaving, I gave 
an address to all the young people connected with the 
church and congregation, speaking from the words, 
" Run, speak to that young man." " Teach the young 
men to be sober." " Teach the young women . . . 
to be good." I had a large congregation of young 
people, and members of the church. The attention 
was so earnest and serious that we felt that abiding 
good would surely result. The same evening, as I 
bade a long good-bye to Bro. Thos. Andrews and 
wife and family, they put into my hand a little token 
of their aifection in the shape of a very beautiful 
scrap-book, beautifully inscribed, and containing the 
names of all. 

On Thursday evening, June 23, the church held a 
farewell tea-meeting, at which a goodly number sat 
down to tea. Then came the after meeting, presided 
over by Bro. Hawkins, and very pleasing things were 
said by the speakers selected for that hour. 

On Friday, at noon, June 24, accompanied by Bro. 
Strang and sixteen brethren and sisters, I went on 



THE GREAT AND WIDE SEA. 185 

board, where we all took an affectionate leave of each 
other, perhaps never to meet again on earth — they to 
return to the busy affairs of this life, and to the cares 
and struggles to be borne in the Master's work, and I 
to set my face toward the far-off Nebraska home. At 
noon the last hawser was cast off, and the strokes of 
the engine, like the throbbings of a mighty heart, 
told us we were already beginning our long voyage. 
Hats were lifted, handkerchiefs were waved, and then 
— as the gulf widened, and headland after headland 
was passed, Sydney, and the friends who had come to 
say good-bye, faded from view; and once more I was 
alone. 

Touching at Melbourne for about twenty hours, I 
had the privilege of once more seeing my own 
brother, with Bro. and Sister Haley, and a few 
others. My brother, with also Brethren Haley and 
Thurgood, accompanied me to the wharf. Bro. Thur- 
good is the brother, one of whose sons is now study- 
ing for the work of the gospel in one of our American 
universities. He is one who does a large amount of 
good in a quiet way. The kindness shown to me by 
him, and also by Brethren T. Magarey and P. Santo, 
of Adelaide, was of no ordinary kind, and I would 
write it here, but know that so doing would hardly 
meet their approval. 

Bidding them all farewell, I went on board once 
more, leaving Melbourne at 4 p.m.; when in the face 
of head-winds and heavy seas, we wended our way to 
Adelaide. On the third day after, we dropped anchor 



186 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

off Glenelg, in the Gulf of St. Vincent, a few miles 
from Adelaide, and in sight of the beautiful home of 
Bro. T. Magarey. I spent two hours on shore at 
Adelaide, taking lunch at Bro. Gore's, himself not at 
home — having gone to meet me, and missed me. His 
good lady, the daughter of the Hon. P. Santo, made 
me welcome with a kindness that was truly genuine. 
On my return to the ship, I found both Brethren 
Gore and T. Magarey waiting to see me, and to bid 
me God-speed on the journey. Bro. Gore introduced 
me to Capt. Dixon, the commander of the " John 
Elder/' who is also a Disciple, and a member of one 
of the churches in Liverpool. Once more the warm 
grasp of the hand, the kindly "farewell/' and the 
fervent " The Lord be with you," and these also 
passed out of sight. It was a very pleasant thing to 
hear Bro. Gore, Bro. Haley, and many others at every 
point say, as they bade me farewell : " Bro. Exley, 
we shall be glad to see you back again." 

At noon, July 1st, we left Adelaide also, and were 
soon again battling with the unabated storm, and 
to add to our discomfort, although the bulwarks are, 
I suppose, more than twenty feet above the water, the 
waves seemed to find it sport to leap clean over them, 
and send great sheets of foaming sea-water to the 
very top of the smoke-stacks, and, after swirling and 
rushing along the upper decks, to drip through and 
through every crack to the saloon beneath, so that for 
days a dry place was not the most easy thing to find. 
Several times, I am told, off these Australian coasts, 



THE GREAT AND WIDE SEA. 187 

the waves have dashed over the vessel in such volume 
as to sweep all the cattle and every movable thing 
overboard. I often found it a source of real pleasure 
to watch the long-winged albatross scudding along 
over the waves and between them, its long wings ap- 
parent!} 7 now and then touching the water, and then, 
rising high into the air, sail away, first one way and 
then another, then round about in a great circle, but 
to my sight scarcely ever waving a wing, though fly- 
ing in the very teeth of the wind. As I thus watched 
them, I thought of Dr. Bonar's beautiful words — 

" And these bright ocean birds, these billow rangers, 
These snowy-breasted, each a winged wave, 
These tell me how to joy in storm and danger, 
When surges whiten, or when whirlwinds rave." 

I was hoping to be able to write something con- 
cerning the aborigines of New South Wales, and the 
efforts that are being made by earnest Christian men 
and women to protect and Christianize them, but the 
documents promised me by Mr. Palmer, the Secretary 
of the Society having these objects in view, were not 
ready in time for me to receive them. I expect Mr. 
Palmer to forward them to me to Nebraska. The 
census returns, however, for South Australia, show a 
total of 5,628 for that Territory, in 1881. Of these, 
3,189 are males and 2,439 females. Since 1876 there 
have been recorded 411 deaths and 301 births, mak- 
ing a net decrease of 110 in five years. Sickness is 
prevalent among them to a great extent, no less than 
959 adults, out of a total of 3,777, being unwell or 



188 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

infirm. On the other hand, the children are not 
numerous, the total number being only 892. The 
end of this race does not appear to be far off. In the 
other colonies they are diminishing at a still more 
rapid rate. It is, however, a possible thing that the 
efforts of good men and women to protect and Chris- 
tianize what are left of them, may avert the extinc- 
tion which now seems only too possible. I am 
informed by my fellow-passenger, Rev. F. S. Poole, 
that a fair measure of success has attended the efforts 
of the Episcopalians, and that quite a number may be 
considered as really redeemed men and women. With 
others of them, however, little or nothing can be 
done. From one or two newspaper leading articles I 
saw, but failed to procure, if these were at all a fair 
statement of facts, there can be no doubt but that 
even now, in the vast territory of Queensland, the 
most cruel wrongs are often inflicted on the natives. 

July 16th. — Australia, New Zealand and Tas- 
mania are very far from me as I write — lands of 
marvelous resources, accomplishments and possibili- 
ties, all of them, and far exceeding any power of 
mine to adequately set forth, yet still with the usual 
drawbacks which seem to accompany human selfish- 
ness, and enormous legislative blundering, as well as 
some belonging to climate, soil and seasons. 

On the night of July 10th we had the good for- 
tune to see one of those very rare sights, a perfect 
lunar rainbow. It is not easy to describe, being 
about as like to the rainbow of the sun and the day, 



THE GREAT AND WIDE SEA. 189 

as is the pale, dead face of a beautiful child, to the 
light and joy and laughter and warm life-tints of that 
face when living. Imagine a dead rainbow — all 
there except its living glories; perfect in form, but 
cold, ashy-colored, with the faintest touch possible of 
the colors fled — and you have the lunar rainbow. 

On the 20th of July we crossed the Equator, the 
heat exceedingly oppressive, and nothing to break 
the monotony. We are now fully 5,400 miles from 
our last Australian port, Adelaide ; but over all this 
vast distance we have seen but one other vessel be- 
sides our own. How truly great is " the great and 
wide sea!" 

For the past few nights we have been favored with 
what to us is a most welcome sight — the North Star 
has become visible to us again, and we have the 
splendid constellations of the Great Bear in the 
North, and of the Southern Cross in the South, shin- 
ing upon us at the same time. It is a very rest-giv- 
ing thing here to remember that, " He knoweth their 
number and calleth them all by their names — not 
one faileth" — as if they were but so many sheep, 
pasturing upon the blue fields of heaven, and that 
vast as is this " great and wide sea." " He holds the 
winds in His fists, and the waters in the hollow of 
His hand." 

On Friday, the 22nd of July, we sighted the first 
land since leaving Australia — Cape Guardafui, Abys- 
sinia; but the pleasure felt at the sight was almost de- 
stroyed by the high, hot winds, and the "no small 



190 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

tempest " which " lay on us." Our voyage over the 
Red Sea was full of the realest physical discomfort, 
from first to last — either hot head-winds or none at 
all, being the case the whole four days we were on it, 
the water itself being eighty-eight degrees. Several 
of our poor fellows were brought up from the stoke- 
hole in a deadly swoon. One strong young man, a 
passenger, volunteered to do duty for one of the men 
for one watch, but at the end of four hours he was 
brought up insensible. Mr. J. L. Young, a gentle- 
man well* known to many of our brethren in Ade- 
laide, and who, after spending about thirty years in 
the Colonies, was returning to end his days in Eng- 
land, through the excessive heat, was smitten with an 
apoplectic fit, and never rallied. Walking about on 
the deck early in the morning — at 9 o'clock in the 
evening we buried him in the Red Sea. It was very 
impressive to hear the ship's bell toll out its solemn 
funeral tones, as the moment of burial drew near. 
The body was placed, after due preparation on a 
board, with the feet out toward the sea, at the open 
port of the after square, and covered with the ship's 
ensign — its great red cross answering well to the 
dead man's form. The captain and a large number of 
the officers and passengers gathered around the scene. 
The Episcopalian funeral service was tenderly and 
impressively read by Mr. Poole. At the moment 
when the body was about to be committed to the 
deep, the low call of the boatswain's whistle was 
heard, and the engines at once stood still ; and as the 



THE GREAT AND WIDE SEA. 191 

words, " We therefore commit his body to the deep/' 
fell from the minister's lips, the body was gently 
raised up by four strong servants of the ship, and 
suffered to slide from beneath its red-cross covering 
into the solemn waters beneath. One short sound, as 
of a " gulp," was heard, when he at once sank beneath 
and beyond the action of the screw-propeller, the 
sighing, sobbing sea shrouding him 'round, and all 
was over. The boatswain's whistle again gave out its 
subdued call, and in response our ship moved rapidly 
on her way, leaving our friend to sleep in the waters 
of the Red Sea until that time when "the sea shall 
give up the dead which are in it." No flowers,- placed 
by gentle hands, will adorn his grave — only the 
white foam of the crested billow, 

" The daisy of the sea," 

and the hundred-fold beautiful 

" Kainbow of the spray," 

flung there by the fingers of the sun, will beautify 
his place of rest. 

On the 28th of July the distant peaks of Sinai 
came into view, and remained visible for many hours. 
To sail over the Red Sea, with the coast of Egypt 
visible on the left and the lofty summit of Sinai visi- 
ble on the right, is, to the believer, a very suggestive 
thing. Egypt, with its olden time civilization, its 
cruel bondage ; the Red Sea, with its wonderful re- 
demption for Israel ; Sinai, with its law " written and 



192 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

engraven on stones/' efficient to condemn, but not 
efficient to pardon the transgressor — all spoke to me 
of deliverance from the bondage of sin, of the Eed 
Sea of redeeming blood, and of our own personal 
self-surrender to the leadership of our great Deliverer 
and redeeming Lord ; when we, being "baptized into 
Jesus Christ/' were " baptized into his death/' the 
law of condemnation passed out of sight, and I joy- 
fully exclaimed, u There is, therefore, now no con- 
demnation to them who are in Christ Jesus; for the 
law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made 
me free from the law of sin and death." 

From our first sighting the coasts of both Asia and 
Africa, until leaving them, nothing but a dreary deso- 
lation of rock and sand met our gaze — hundreds of 
miles of unbroken desert, with lofty mountains far 
back in the interior. The long belt of sand along the 
entire line of the horizon, as the sun pours down 
upon it his fierce rays, presents the illusive appear- 
ance of long golden stretches of a summer evening 
sky just before the sun goes down, and the distant 
mountains present the appearance of patches of cloud, 
with lines and bands of light between. The illusion 
is so perfect that it is difficult at times to feel sure 
that it is all solid rock or shifting sand. Occasion- 
ally the white tents of some Arab encampment, as if 
erected close to the sea, gave a pleasing variety to the 
scene, and set us all wondering how they could live 
in such a desert as that. 

On our arrival at Suez, no sooner had we dropped 



THE GREAT AND WIDE SEA. 193 

anchor than we were besieged by a fleet of small 
boats, their Arab owners intent on trading and getting 
gain. Merchants with feathers, robes, lace and small 
wares, came on board. Hanging their boat-hooks on 
any ledge the side of the ship offered them, they 
pulled themselves up hand over hand, sticking their 
shoeless toes against the smooth iron about as fear- 
lessly as if they had found, cut out on purpose for 
them, a flight of steps. 

I had often read of Arab extortion, and so I 
watched them with a tireless interest. Their eyes, 
bright and restless, seemed to miss nothing ; their 
ceaseless chatter as they sought to sell their wares had 
a charm for me that was fascinating, and so I wan- 
dered up and down the deck from one to another, to 
see how these dark-skinned children of the desert 
could manage to fleece the honest trading whites! 
They will likely enough take advantage when they 
have the chance ; the very thing they very rarely get. 
Extortion ! I saw a large number of sales take place, 
but whilst in every case the vendor was ready to take 
a very large reduction from his own price, I did not 
see one case where the original price asked was too 
much, judging by trade transactions elsewhere. The 
extortion was, as I thought, all on the side of the 
whites. As a sample of Arab extortion, I saw fifteen 
links of beautiful coral beads offered for seventy-two 
cents; thirty-six cents was offered — and taken. No 
wonder that they are nearly naked, and that Arab 

beggars abound. 
13 



194 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

The journey through the Suez Canal, about ninety- 
three miles in length, was one hot torture during the 
whole twenty-four hours occupied in passing through 
it. The glaring sands on either side seemed to fling 
back at us the superheated rays of the sun, as if 
they delighted to torture. Occasionally the monotony 
was broken by groups of Arabs engaged in dredging 
or widening the canal; or a family of Arabs en- 
camped on the burning sands, their camels laid down 
at rest. 

On Saturday, the 30th of July, we reached Port 
Said, a city created by the canal, where we had the 
gratifying privilege of a few hours' run on shore. 
Port Said is a hard place. Blind beggars, crippled 
beggars, sick and creeping beggars, beggars young 
and old, lazy Arabs stretched out their full lengths 
on side- paths and other shady places — the streets 
filled with vendors of small wares, with here and 
there Egyptian women veiled from just below the 
eyes to the knees with a black veil, a chain of large 
gold or gilt rings passing down the center of the fore- 
head to the nose, and each carrying a large water-jar 
on the head, in the most perfect equilibrium — all 
these, and other things, combined to produce a picture 
not soon or easily to be forgotten. To add to the 
charm of it all, one has but to reflect that he stands 
on Egyptian soil, or rather sand ; and that the feet of 
Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and Joseph and his breth- 
ren, may have pressed upon it; and over it, perhaps, 
have been driven many of the weary, suffering sons 



THE GREAT AND WIDE SEA. 195 

of Israel, urged on under the blows of the task- 
master's rod. Here again it seemed to me, that the 
" extortion " practiced was by no means all on the 
side of the Arabs. I was often asked for alms, but 
never persistently. Once or twice " No," kindly but 
firmly spoken, was sufficient. 

At Port Said we took on board some 600 tons of 
coal, every pound of which was put on by the Arabs, 
with perhaps a few Nubians amongst them, the black- 
est of all black men I ever saw, but tall, lithe and 
straight as an arrow. This large quantity was all 
lifted in about five hours. It was a strange sight to 
me, to look upon these lightly built but wiry and 
strong men, carrying such heavy burdens in rush 
baskets on their backs between the shoulders, with a 
rag wrapped 'round the head, the ends of it falling 
behind so as to help to protect the neck and shoul- 
ders, and in many cases with only a shirt to protect 
them, and in some scarcely that. They walked over 
the rough coals under their heavy burdens in their 
bare feet, and kept up an incessant clatter of 
tongues. When any one had any instructions to give, 
remark to make, or question to ask, it was always 
done with the right hand stretched out. 

There were two different tribes engaged on one 
boat, not a wise arrangement at all ; for if one of each 
tribe got to blows, it was the signal for a general free 
fight, and it was quite startling to witness the fierce- 
ness with which they suddenly sprang upon each 
other. This kind of pastime was indulged in two or 



196 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

three times, which set me to thinking, that if any- 
thing like that was a common occurrence at the build- 
ing of the Tower of Babel, no wonder they speedily 
left off and went their several ways. 

A long and very heavy plank fell on the side of 
one of them, knocking him down, and apparently 
hurting him so much that it was with great difficulty 
he could rise to his feet again. I feared at first that 
his back was broken. Having got up again, he 
quietly folded his arms across his breast, with the 
hands on the shoulders, when another strong young 
man went behind him, put his arms around his neck, 
and grasping his hands firmly, then put his right 
knee against the injured one's back and gave him a 
severe wrench in the direction opposite to that in- 
flicted by the falling plank. . A rather curious piece 
of surgery, truly; but the injured young man at once 
went to his heavy duty again. At Suez a goodly 
number of us bought the long-tasselled red Turkish 
fez, w T hich, as a matter of course, we put on, and a 
red-headed lot we looked. Being exceedingly weary 
and far from well, I laid me down for a little while 
on the cushioned seats of the cabin, putting my fez on 
the table by my side. While thus resting, although 
it was not yet dinner time, mine was stolen. 

As we steamed through the Suez Canal, Arabs 
sometimes ran along the bank, shouting for " back- 
sheesh," with only a single garment on, and that held 
so as not to impede their running. It was on our 
arrival in Egyptian waters, we first heard the astound- 



THE GREAT AND WIDE SEA. 197 

ing news of the attempted assassination of President 
Gen. Garfield. The grief and consternation caused 
by this intelligence was general all through the ship, 
and the most fervent hopes and desires were ex- 
pressed that he might speedily recover, and the crimi- 
nal meet with a prompt retribution. At Naples the 
first questions asked were all about the President. 

At 5 p. m., July 30, we left Port Said and its half- 
naked Arabs, and in a short time we were sailing over 
the blue waters of the Mediterranean, with strong 
head-winds, and oppressively warm. Capt. Dixon 
was very kind to me, offering in the kindliest way any 
little extra comfort the vessel afforded. He is a very 
popular commander, and stands high in the estimation 
of all. Passing by Candia, on Monday, Aug. 1, on 
Thursday, the 4th, we had a kind of field day from 
about 3 A. m. to 12 p. m., passing in review in that 
time some of nature's grandest wonders. Shortly 
after 3 a. m. I was up, and, first taking a bath, I hur- 
ried on deck, and through the dull gray of the early 
morning, saw the distant form of the mighty iEtna. 

As the light broadened out, clouds of smoke or 
steam were clearly seen to be issuing from its crater. 
On the east it seems to slope away to the sea, but on 
the west a large retinue of lofty lava mountains 
stretch for a long distance, each one running in huge 
ridges down into the sea; but every nook and corner 
where a vine can grow seems to be turned to account, 
and a large population is scattered all over these 
almost inaccessible places. 



198 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

Then came the Straits of Messina — Sicily on our 
left and Italy on our right, and both very close to us, 
for the straits are very narrow, and made narrower 
still to all unlawful rangers of the deep by stroDg 
forts and heavy ordnance to protect them. To assail 
Sicily or Italy at this narrow point, will demand a 
" striving" of no ordinary kind. As we sailed quietly 
between these beautiful shores, I thought of the 
"strait gate and narrow way that leadeth unto life." 
Not long after losing sight of the vine-clad slopes of 
Mount JEtna, Stromboli loomed up before us, vol- 
umes of smoke rising from its summit. On its west- 
ern side an enormously wide and deep channel is 
visible, down which the rivers of lava have poured 
themselves into the sea. On the base of the northern 
slope some 1,200 people have their homes. Stromboli 
rises up out of the sea as one gigantic cone, as if dis- 
daining fellowship with any besides, whilst away in 
the distance many other cones of huge proportions 
are scattered up and down. 

As the evening closed in around us, the grand form 
of Vesuvius arrested all eyes, and although quiet 
now, the mountain is still giving signs of unextin- 
guished fires. Pompeii and Herculaneum are each 
but a few miles away, and bear witness to its destruc- 
tive energy. We were favored during the whole 
night in seeing on its topmost cone what to us looked 
like a magnificent " pillar of fire," and during all our 
stay, after the morning had come, a glorious "pillar 
of cloud by day." As we passed slowly up the Bay 



THE GREAT AND WIDE SEA. 199 

of Naples, which is nearly seven miles in circumfer- 
ence, at nearly midnight there suddenly flashed upon 
us from two vessels in the harbor, electric lights of a 
most brilliant character. Whether done to give us 
welcome or to show off the beauties of the city and 
its entire surroundings, I know not, but as the lights 
fell upon the Castle of St. Elmo, and slowly swept 
over the city, the shipping and the bay, the effect was 
indescribably beautiful. Everything seemed to be 
bathed in a flood of strange light, not golden or 
roseate at all, but a sort of weird compound of un- 
utterable blue and green, and a brilliant mist of 
dazzling white and purple tissue. I think that no 
one of us who witnessed this will ever forget it. 

Next morning, accompanied by a friend, I went on 
shore for two hours. Of course, nothing worthy the 
name of a visit was possible in that time ; but we lost 
no time. Naples was before us, and we struck for the 
center of the city. " See Naples and die," is often 
written and spoken. All right, for those who wish to 
do so, but I do not wish to die there. Seen from the 
bay, with its Castle of St. Elmo on its lofty hight, 
from whence, in revolutionary times, cannon have 
sent shot into the city, and its palace and other public 
buildings to the left, and far to the right its long line 
of very handsome brick buildings, formerly used as a 
granary, but now as barracks for troops — the domes 
and towers which stud the city in all directions, the 
palatial residences visible on the vine-clad hills be- 
hind the city, and stretching around the bay, with 



200 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

smoke and fire-crowned Vesuvius towering over all 
— thus seen, no pen can do it justice. Seen from the 
inside of the city, the scene is changed indeed. 
Theaters, churches, statuary, paintings, fountains, 
grand as these all are, the streets are so narrow, the 
houses so high — six, seven, and even eight stories; 
the people can almost shake hands from opposite 
sides — the crowds of poorly dressed, thin and care- 
worn looking people, the close, unsavory atmosphere, 
" Ichabod " will as well depict it as any other word. 
We wandered the length of many streets, but the 
most comfortable looking of all the people we met 
were the crown-shaven or rope-girdled priests and 
monks. We walked behind one of these well pro- 
portioned gentlemen, a priest or monk, around whose 
ample throat was wound a collar — I suppose it once 
was white, but now about the color of the lava sold 
in the shops. We never saw a book-store, or the 
semblance of one, except a shabby little book-stall in 
one of the public open spaces, and seemingly with 
nothing in it but songs and paper-covered volumes of 
plays, nor did a single picturesque costume meet our 
eyes. We were glad, indeed, to see Naples, even the 
little we did, but having seen so much of it, I con- 
cluded that the best place in which to die, is not there. 
The beggars of Naples are the most pertinacious, 
the boldest and most insolent I ever saw. Young 
girls thrust into my bosom small bouquets of flowers 
and boxes of matches, and so adroitly that it was 
difficult to get rid of them. Finding that we could 



THE GREAT AND WIDE SEA. 201 

not be induced to give or buy, they turned away at 
last, wishing us a speedy journey to the place from 
whence they suppose Vesuvius draws his supplies. 
We had a whole tribe of small-ware merchants come 
on board. Extortionate enough they often were in 
their first charges, yet about as well checkmated by 
their customers as is at all desirable. It appeared to 
me, that it is with them as with the Arabs, the very 
small price obtained for anything they sell, must help 
to crush them down and make beggars of them all. 

At 1 P. M., Aug. 4, we steamed out of the harbor, 
leaving its beautiful waters and the crowded city to 
those who shall come after, and in a short time we 
were outside, and Vesuvius, with its ceaseless pillars 
of fire and smoke, and this region of wonders were 
left behind. In a few days more we hope to be in 
England, from whence this will be posted to the 
Standard. One more letter, and, the Lord willing, I 
shall be home. H. Exley. 

Off Cape Finisterre, Aug. 9, 1881. 



LETTER XVI. 

BOUND FOR COUNTRY AND HOME. 

Bay of Biscay, Aug. 10, 1881. 

Leaving the Bay and City of Naples, as mentioned 
before, and utterly wearied with the long day's pleas- 
ure and ceaseless activity, I was glad to find relief 
and rest in sitting down to write. 

On the third day after losing sight of Mount Vesu- 
vius, on Lord's day evening, just before the sun went 
down, we were all delighted to get a glimpse of the 
bold Rock of Gibraltar. To unnautical eyes, dis- 
tances at sea are very deceptive. Although our good 
ship was running according to the " log" about thir- 
teen miles an hour, it was a long time after first 
sighting the famous " Rock " before we were close to 
it. Approached from the east, it presents a very 
close resemblance to a couchant lion, but by the time 
we were fairly abreast of it, the darkness of the even- 
ing had gathered around us, and instead of the grim 
fortress, with its instruments of death frowning upon 
us, the lights of one or two lighthouses flashed upon 
us, as out of benevolent eyes, their assurance of peace 
and safety. 

The Bay of Biscay, of deservedly evil reputation 

in sailor song and story, though by no means calm, 
(202) 



BOUND FOR HOME. 203 

was not severely stormy as we sailed over it, but just 
rough enough to remind us that, notwithstanding the 
bigness of our ship, we were after all " but a feeble 
folk." 

Mr. Plimsol, the merchant sailor, and the success- 
ful contender in the British Parliament for protection 
to the sailor, asked of Sir Charles Adderly, the Presi- 
dent of the Board of Trade, " what number of ves- 
sels had been lost in the Bay of Biscay since the 
adoption of the ' load-line ' act (Mr. PlimsoPs meas- 
ure), and what number in the corresponding period 
preceding." Sir Charles Adderly replied that " from 
February, 1874, to February, 1875, before the adop- 
tion of the f load-line/ twenty-six steamers and 176 
lives were lost in the Bay of Biscay; but from Feb- 
ruary, 1875, to February, 1876, since its adoption, 
only two steamers and twenty-six lives were lost." 
(Engineer's Manual, 1877.) There is much other 
work for other Plimsols to do, before all the avoid- 
able terrors of the sea are removed. 

From Naples to London is about eight days' good 
sailing — the monotony constantly broken by the ap- 
pearance of ships bound to their several ports, and 
the last two days by the letter writing to friends and 
preparations to go on shore. A few hours before 
touching at Plymouth, we were all delighted to see, 
away off to our right, the Eddystone Lighthouse, a 
splendid testimony both to the noblest benevolence 
and to man's masterhood of the sea. From Ply- 
mouth, where we sent on shore a number of pas- 



204 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

sengers and the mails, all the way up to Gravesend, 
the scenery is very beautiful, and to us, who had seen 
little else than the blue sea and the star-studded sky 
for seven weeks, it suggested thoughts of " the beau- 
teous land," and " the light that never was on sea or 
shore;" and our thoroughly clean and newly painted 
and well trimmed ship, safely now at home, gave very 
lively hints to many of us of " the abundant entrance 
into the everlasting kingdom," when the voyage of 
life is safely over. As we passed up to our anchorage 
ground, the waters literally alive with shipping, we 
passed an American vessel of war, the Stars and 
Stripes floating at her stern. I had never seen the 
great flag look so beautiful before. I did not know 
that I so deeply loved it till then, and almost in- 
voluntarily I sprang to the side of the ship and 
waved it a hearty " three cheers." 

At noon, Saturday, Aug. 13, hiring a small boat, 
and bidding the captain and a few friends a good- 
bye," I left the John Elder, and in one hour was 
rolling away on the cars* from Gravesend to London, 
where I arrived in time for a hearty welcome from 
Bro. Black, who had come up from his sea-side visit 
on purpose to meet me, Sister Black remaining there 
with the younger members of the family. Bro. Black 
is now retired from business, and as an elder in a 
Christian Church, he has, so far as known to me, but 
few equals. He is not only "apt to teach," but now 
spends nearly as much time in actual pastoral work, 
visiting the members of the church, as he formerly 



BOUND FOR HOME. 205 

devoted to business. He is an example to rich men, 
such as I do not know another. Twenty years ago, 
when laboring in London as an evangelist, his hos- 
pitable home was mine. He generously sustained me 
out of his own purse, and took care that I was never 
shabbily clothed. So freely, heartily, and lovingly 
was this done, that although I was their guest this 
way for several times and several months at a time, 
after I left England and made my home in the West- 
ern States, I received from them a letter, telling me 
that the} r never regretted my presence in their home 
for a moment. Few, indeed, are the things that have 
been sweeter to me in this life, than this. Years are 
now whitening the heads of both Bro. and Sister 
Black, but their hands do not slacken in the Master's 
work, and, taken all in all, such loving, ceaseless, 
self-sacrificing toilers, Bro. Black in the church, and 
Sister Black in the Sunday-school, and in all good 
works, I have never met in one church again. Surely, 
their crown will be a crown of life. 

I remained but some three days in London, visiting 
in that time some of the faithful ones, whom, in years 
long gone past, it was my privilege to help to find the 
truth as it is in Jesus, and to baptize into the sacred 
names. Amongst other visits, I went to see Bro. J. 
B. Rotherham, with whom I had a most delightful 
stroll, and chat about many things, along the Thames 
embankment as far as the Cleopatra's Needle. Years 
begin to tell on him ; hard study and hard work and 
much care are silvering his locks — whitening them 



206 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

for the harvest-home. His New Testament is not 
half well enough known to the brethren in America ; 
it corresponds very exactly in many of its renderings 
with the Revised Version. It will likely be found 
that in him Bro. Moore will have an able coadjutor 
in the most serious work he has ever undertaken — in 
seeking to plant a church in London. 

From London I went at once to Southport, receiv- 
ing a warm welcome from Brethren Moore and Garri- 
son especially — the latter of whom I had never seen- 
before. He is far from being strong, and the work 
on his hands is far from being free from care and 
anxiety. On the two Lord's days I spent in South- 
port, I preached for him, once in the morning and 
twice of an evening. Bro. Coop, I did not think was 
looking as well as when he left Adelaide in Australia. 

During my stay in Southport, which was but a few 
days at intervals apart, it was my privilege to meet, in 
company at Bro. Coop's, Mr. Henry Varley, of Lon- 
don, whose evangelistic fame is known around the 
whole world. During some three hours, I think, 
with the open New Testament in our hands, and in 
company with an Episcopalian clergyman visiting at 
Bro. Coop's, we had a long and exceedingly interest- 
ing conversation as to the relations in which the law 
and the gospel mutually stood toward each other. 

The deeply calm, reverent and earnest spirit of Mr. 
Varley takes one captive almost at once. Churches 
built up under such a ministry as his can not fail to 
be churches full of spiritual power. It may be that, 



BOUND FOR HOME. 207 

under God, such a man cooperating with Bro. Moore 
in the double work of the pulpit and the press, if 
faithful to the whole truth — compromising in noth- 
ing — these two will be enabled to inaugurate and 
carry on the most glorious reformation work that 
London and England have seen for many a day. The 
brethren will be justified in looking for large results. 

On Thursday evening, Sept. 1, the church at South- 
port held one of those, at all times, very pleasant 
gatherings, a social tea-meeting, after which, Bro. 
Garrison in the chair, several speeches were made, 
when Bro. Coop, on behalf of the church, presented 
a ver} 7 beautiful time-piece to Bro. and Sister Moore. 
The church in Southport grows but very slowly, and 
at present is far from being a strong church — the dif- 
ficulties which have lain in its path have neither been 
few nor feeble. The congregations are thin, a result 
of those difficulties ; and rich and deeply spiritual and 
powerful as is the preaching of Bro. Garrison, it 
will be slow work to carry the battle to a worthy 
victory. 

Bro. Garrison, as chairman of the meeting, referred 
in touching terms to the wounded President, and 
spoke of Mrs. Garfield in the most graceful manner 
as " Our uncrowned Queen. " The feeling in Eng- 
land toward President Garfield hardly ever had its- 
parallel. Men who were never in America, and never 
expect to be, could scarcely utter his name without 
tears in their eyes and a tremor in the voice. God 
grant that the future may ever find that one heart and 



208 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

soul may live and throb in both nations, as if they 
were but one people. 

On Monday evening, Sept. 5, the newly planted 
church in Liverpool also had its tea-meeting — when 
quite a large company sat down to tea. Brethren 
Moore, Garrison, Van Horn, a Baptist minister, but 
whose name escapes me, with also Bro. Newington 
and myself were present. Bro. Garrison presided 
over the meeting. An address, beautifully illumin- 
ated and framed, and couched in terms which must 
have been very grateful to both Bro. and Sister 
Moore (for she was also present), was presented to 
them, on behalf of the Liverpool church, by Bro. 
Edmund Rowson, whom, with his excellent wife, it 
was my joy to baptize into the faith of Jesus when la- 
boring at Birkenhead, a little more than a year and a 
half ago. Bro. and Sister Moore go to London rich 
in the affections of many. There are elements of real 
ability in the church at Liverpool — young men pious 
and devoted ; but whether Bro. Moore has done a 
wise thing, so far as Liverpool is concerned, to go 
away to another field just at this particular time, the 
future alone can reveal. It may be seriously doubted. 
It was delightful to see so large a membership, and 
apparently all in real earnest and happy. I attended 
the services one Lord's day, presiding at the table in 
the morning, Bro. Newington speaking to the church, 
and my impression was that he will improve on ac- 
quaintance, for he spoke quite well, and without any 
notes. 



BOUND FOR HOME. 209 

In the evening, Bro. Van Horn, from Chester, was 
the preacher. The large room was well filled, and 
with an intelligent and earnestly listening audience. 
Bro. Van Horn is a speaker of no mean order. I at- 
tended also a week evening meeting, and was very 
much pleased to see such a goodly number of the 
members present, many of them having come a rather 
long distance to be there. Altogether, the work in 
Liverpool appears to be good ; but after all, we think ' 
it a mistake that Bro. Moore could not remain for a 
few months longer. 

On Wednesday, Sept. 7, bidding good-bye to Bro. 
and Sister Moore, Bro. and Sister Coop, Sister Haigh, 
and many others, accompanied by Bro. Garrison, I 
left Southport, and at 4 p. M. was on board the steam- 
ship " England," bound for the great Western land 
once more. Old Father Cavan, one of the elders of 
one of the Liverpool churches, and over eighty years 
of age, came, having walked three miles to see me, to 
say once more " farewell." Twenty years ago, all 
unknown to himself, he gave me a lesson on preach- 
ing which has never been forgotten. Requested to 
preach one evening during the sessions of the An- 
nual meeting, by the desire of brethren in whose 
judgment I had all confidence, I preached from the 
words, " The weak things of the world," etc., putting 
into the discourse quite as much of science as of 
Christ. The wise old brother said to one who told 
me his words, " Bro. Exley will never do for Liver- 
pool ! " Shortly afterwards, having to preach in the 
14 



210 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

same place again, the subject chosen was, " God mani- 
fest in the flesh. " The theme was Christ — from be- 
ginning to end, Christ. With tears in his eyes and 
great earnestness in his manner, he spoke once more, 
and said: " Bro. Exley is just the man for Liver- 
pool !" Since then I have not ceased to teach and to 
preach Christ. Bro. Cavan and old Bro. Corf, one 
of the truest saints of earth, and also one of the 
elders of the oldest church in Liverpool, are both 
now nearly at the journey's end. The sweet inter- 
course of twenty years ago was renewed, and I visited 
first with one, and then with the other. Both in- 
tensely Christ-loving, they, with Bro. Tickle, grudged 
no toil or self-sacrifice, that His name might be 
carried to the poorest and humblest. In all my own 
work of tract distribution to thousands of homes, in 
all my cottage preachings and out-door efforts to 
spread the knowledge of the Saviour, they gave their 
help and encouragement, like men who with all the 
heart believed that the name of Jesus Christ was the 
only bond and link between earth and heaven. It 
was a very glad thing to know that much of the 
fruit of that time abides in the Liverpool churches 
to-day. There are densely populated streets where, 
standing alone, and with by no means ungrudged per- 
mission, on the door-steps of some cottage house, I 
have read out a chapter, patiently waiting till a little 
company had gathered around me, and then sought to 
unfold to them the riches of redeeming grace. Once, 
when thus engaged, a well dressed but badly intoxi- 



BOUND FOR HOME. 211 

cated man came, and taking his place just in front 
of me, became very noisy and annoying. Deeply feel- 
ing the solemnity of my mission, I suddenly ad- 
dressed him, and said, "Sir! I have a message from 
God to you." He blundered out, "Well, what is 
it?" I answered, "Drunkards shall not inherit the 
kingdom of* God." The effect was instantaneous — 
he never opened his lips again, but stood to the 
end of the service, and then quietly walked away. 
Those days are gone now — days they were of hard 
toil, of loving sympathy and earnest cooperation, and 
of some fruit that still abides. 

Bro. Newington's field of labor is far away re- 
moved from the other churches ; they might cooperate, 
but they are too remote from each other to unde- 
signedly hinder. 

Bro. Newington, Sister Rowson, and a few others, 
came on board for a final adieu; and then, as our 
ship, the " England," swung 'round to the turning of 
the tide, the anchor was raised, and Liverpool quickly 
faded away in the distance, perhaps never to be 
visited by me again. 

The voyage to New York was without special in- 
cident. We had a very large passenger list, of all 
grades. It was very stormy at times, but to me quite 
enjoyable. From Sydney, New South Wales, to Lon- 
don, and from London to New York, though often 
unwell, sea-sickness was unknown. On the Friday 
evening two days before landing in New York, a 
ship's newspaper was started in our saloon^ and never 



212 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

before have I known how truly frivolous a number of 
intelligent people can be when so disposed. On the 
Saturday evening, by way of thanksgiving for our 
safe voyage across the stormy Atlantic, a number of 
them kept up song and dance until midnight. At 
about 5:30 p. m., Lord's day, Sept. 18, I was safely % on 
shore, being also met by Bro. William Neal, of Liver- 
pool, whose father is a deacon in one of the Liver- 
pool churches, and who came to the knowledge of the 
truth under my labors there twenty years since. 
Very shortly after, a very cordial Christian welcome 
was given me by Bro. and Sister Carr, at whose 
always hospitable home my stay was made for the 
twenty-six hours I remained in New York. I was 
fortunately in time to attend the special prayer-meet- 
ing appointed in the church, and, at the request of 
Bro. Carr, gave a short address. A letter from 
home urged me to lose no time, on account of the 
serious sickness of my wife, and so I took the 
Monday evening train for the West, arriving at my 
own home on Thursday evening, Sept. 22, just one 
year and five days after leaving it, "not knowing 
what should befall me." I found my dear wife very 
sick indeed. She is better now. All the rest I 
found well. I am led sometimes to think that more 
strange providences, and mercies and struggles have 
been mine than those of any one I have ever known, 
and am often tempted to sketch out an autobiography, 
with photographs of men and things in the churches, 
with some others, as I have known them. 



BOUND FOR HOME. 213 

A few paragraphs more, and this letter will end the 
series, which, with all their faults, have consciously 
nothing extenuated, 

" Nor set down aught in malice." 

Bro. Coop and myself, wherever we went and what- 
ever we saw, sought to go simply as Christian men, 
and to see, not as either Englishmen or Americans, 
but to see things as they were, and if we said any- 
thing concerning them, to say what was just and true. 
I could easily illustrate the evil that has been done, in 
more places than one, by drawing contrasts between 
England and America, with the tone, manner and 
matter disparaging to the former. The evil done is 
done quietly, but is almost incurable, and wherever 
done by a preacher, either one way or another, it 
proves a blighting influence on his work. 

On the 17th of Sept., 1880, as my sons were cutting 
hay, about noon the sickle broke, compelling one of 
them to go to Lincoln to get it repaired. Had it not 
broken, he would not have gone. Had he not gone 
just when he did, or had the sickle broken on the 
previous day, this letter and all the rest, and all this 
strange and wonderful journey, would not have been. 
Breaking when the sickle did, it sent one of my sons 
to the Lincoln post-office, to find there for me the 
following telegram: " Meet me at Omaha to-morrow 
at 12 a. m. Take ticket for San Francisco, and I pay 
expenses. — T. Coop." After receiving it late in the 
evening, on hearing it read, my wife exclaimed: 



214 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

" The Lord permitted that sickle to break just when 
it did." In about sixteen hours afterwards, I had 
packed my valise, taken an hour or two's sleep, 
traveled seven miles through storm and heavy roads 
to Lincoln, and some eighty miles to Omaha. Stand- 
ing on the platform of the station at Omaha, Bro. 
Coop said : " Before we start, let us understand each 
other. How are we going? I pay expenses, and 

you " "And I give my life and time and strength, 

free," was my response. And thus we started, each 
with the single-hearted desire that in some way the 
Lord would make it fruitful of good. 

The soul of Bro. Coop may be clearly read in this: 
When fairly on the journey, I said: "Bro. Coop, you 
seem to me very much like the man in the gospels, as 
far as this journey is concerned — he began to build, 
you know, without counting the cost." He looked 
amused as well as thoughtful, and said: "/haven't 
counted the cost!" Bro. Exley responded:. "But I 
have, and you can't take me this long journey, with 
all its incidental expenses, for less than about £300! 
That is a very large sum of money, and much as I 
love the idea of the journey, and especially of seeing 
Palestine, I do n't feel justified in allowing you to 
spend so much money on my account. I would much 
rather you sent me to Jersey Island to try and estab- 
lish a mission there, and I will go and make it a life 
work, and £300 will go a long way toward fairly giv- 
ing it a starting." After a moment's reflection, he 
said : " I do not care for the money, if we only can do 



BOUND FOR HOME. 215 

good" We sought always and only to do good. If 
we failed, it was not the aim of either intention or 
effort. 

As we voyaged between America and New Zealand, 
we made it a part of every morning's duty, and it was 
from the first a delightful privilege, to read together, 
chapter after chapter, the Acts, each making his own 
penciled notes, and then comparing them. Starting 
with the idea that the Acts reveal what was specially 
said and done under the immediate government of the 
Holy Spirit, and that it embraces the infallible his- 
tory of the church for a period of over thirty years, 
we were struck with the fact that, nowhere, under any 
circumstances, is there such a thing as even a hint 
that Jesus had ever instructed his disciples, or that 
they had ever so understood him, that, the plenitude 
of the Holy Spirit and of power having come, and 
that full redemption being now accomplished through 
the one sacrifice on the Cross, they must there- 
fore teach the people (the Jews) to forsake Moses, or 
cease to offer their accustomed sacrifices in the tem- 
ple, or to abstain, as Christians, from anything com- 
manded in the law. We noted that, had anything 
been said on the day of Pentecost that could by any 
possibility have been tortured by the " mockers," as 
against the law, the newly born Christian common- 
wealth could not have had "favor with all the peo- 
ple." We noted the facts of the third chapter, that 
Peter and John had no scruple against going up 
to the temple to participate in its solemn service 



216 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

at the hour of prayer, and that in his second sermon, 
Peter declared that Jesus had been sent to bless 
them, not in turning them away from 3£oses and the 
law, but " from their iniquities." We noted the fact 
that when arrested and brought before the Sanhedrim 
— that body of men so hungry for the overthrow of 
the Name — they were not charged with being in any 
sense teachers seeking to turn the people to a forsak- 
ing of the law, or the service it required ; but " the 
priests, and the captain of the temple, and the Saddu- 
cees came upon them, being sore troubled, because 
they taught the people and proclaimed in Jesus the 
resurrection of the dead." Not less than 5,000 men 
in Jerusalem believe, but not one of them even sus- 
pects that the law is being set aside, and the Sanhe- 
drim " let them go, finding nothing how they might 
punish them.'* We saw that twice, as recorded in the 
fifth chapter, were "the apostles" arrested, and put 
in prison or brought before the Council, but the only 
thing alleged against them was that they continued to 
teach in the forbidden name. All this being utterly 
beyond reasonable credibility, if the apostles had 
at any time taught one thing that would weaken the 
force of the law, or that such men, evidently watch- 
ing how they might destroy the apostles, should have 
let them go, the more so as the apostles directly 
charged upon them the crucifixion of the Prince and 
Saviour, endorsed and sealed by the Holy Ghost. 
Nay, more : " Every day in the temple " as well as at 
home, they ceased not to teach and to preach Jesus 



BOUND FOR HOME. 2-17 

Christ. We wondered what certain modern " keepers 
of the temple," who talk about " the light that 
streams from the sanctuary/' would say to the re- 
corded fact that " a great company of the priests be- 
came obedient to the faith," and of not one of them is 
it said that he forsook the law of his fathers, or gave 
up his customary service in or at the temple ; nor 
even, if being of the class whose services consisted of 
singing in the temple choir, and of playing upon in- 
struments of music, were they called upon to do such 
service no more. Here was " light streaming from 
the sanctuary" indeed; revealing such a gentleness in 
the ggspel, and such large-hearted love in even the 
most "zealous for the law" adherents to the gospel, 
that no jar is felt in the church of many thousands, 
nor is there even a well grounded suspicion, in the 
mind of either believing or unbelieving Jew, that the 
law was being secretly or openly taught, or set aside, 
as of no further requirement to the Jew. Every at- 
tempt to fasten on the apostles, or any of the first 
proclaimers of the gospel, the charge of seeking to 
subvert the law of Moses, utterly fails. We also ob- 
served how that, with emphasis, James the apostle 
and the elders that were with him in Jerusalem, said 
to Paul : " Thou seest, brother, how many thousands 
(myriads) there are among the Jews which have be- 
lieved; and they are all zealous for the law; and they 
have been informed concerning thee, that thou teach- 
est all the Jews which are among the Gentiles to for- 
sake Moses, telling them not to circumcise their 



218 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

children, neither to walk after their customs. We 
have four men which have a vow on them (believers f) 
These take and purify thyself with them, and be 
at charges for them, that they may shave their heads, 
and all shall know that there is no truth in the things 
whereof they accuse thee; but that thou thyself also 
walkest orderly, keeping the law" (R. V.). And 
Paul went and did it ! We marveled that the Mother 
Church of all churches, under the very eyes of the 
apostles at Jerusalem, and under the very govern- 
ment and direction of the Holy Ghost, should at the 
end of thirty years after Pentecost, not have a man in 
it but who was " zealous for the law;" and that the 
apostles themselves, with Paul also — Paul, the great 
preacher to the uncircumcision — should all be at 
special pains to show that all charges to the contrary 
were false. We saw that when Paul stood before 
Festus, charged by his countrymen with <l many and 
grievous charges," he quietly said in his own defense, 
" Neither against the law of the Jews, nor against the 
temple, nor against Csesar, have I sinned at all." We 
observed these a*id very many other facts and inci- 
dental statements, all showing such a toleration, gen- 
tleness and large-hearted charity as stand at an 
almost immeasurable distance from that zeal for the 
Lord's house which, with uncoverable bitterness, can 
ostracise and disfellowship all who do not conform, 
not to the gospel of Jesus, but to their dogmas con- 
cerning it. We saw that Paul never forsook the re- 
ligion of his fathers, and that this was no bar to his 



BOUND FOR HOME. 219 

fullest communion with all who, in every place, called 
upon the name of the Lord Jesus ; and that his last 
utterance on this matter, as given in the last chapter 
of Acts, was, " I have done nothing against the peo- 
ple, or the customs of the fathers." From all this, we 
concluded that the mission of the believer in Jesus 
does not alluw him, where unfortunately any breach 
does exist amongst the brethren, to widen the breach 
— to magnify any difference — to increase any bitter- 
ness, or misrepresent in any measure those from 
whom he may differ. We gathered that, whilst the 
believer must strive with all his heart to be loyal to 
the Lord Jesus and his gospel, he must not, under 
plea of faithfulness to the requirements of the gospel, 
treat with unkindness, and place under ban any who 
love the Master, but who have failed to gather up the 
same measure of truth with himself. We thought we 
saw a catholicity of spirit attending the proclamation 
of the gospel, and filling its proclaimers, which al- 
ways won the truth-loving, and never yielded or 
compromised the gospel, even when with "all good 
conscience " as Jews they forsook not the " law of 
their fathers," and mingled in both the temple wor- 
ship and synagogue service. 

Occupied thus, day after day, our voyage was filled 
from first to last with the realest interest, and we 
think helped us to see men and things more nearly as 
they really are, than we otherwise could have done. 
Looking over the various fields of labor we visited, it 
is but bare justice to say that the cause of a pure gos- 



220 A TRIP AROUND THE WORLD. 

pel has taken deep root in all these far-off lands, and 
that Brethren Earl, M. B. Green, of Dunedin; Gore, 
Surber, Carr, Haley, Bates, Strang, Marston, with the} 
Australian preachers, have done no small share to- 
ward the present result. It may be also said that but 
few preachers have ever had such faithful co-helpers 
as they have found in the brethren themselves, with- 
out whose self-sacrificing hard work the labors of the 
preachers would have counted for little. The British 
Millennial Harbinger, published by the late Bro. 
J. Wallis, of England, has had very large influence in 
molding the character of the colonial churches, and 
the Ecclesiastical Observer, Bro. D. King's paper, has 
contributed in past years in the same direction. The 
brethren in Australia have now, however, their own 
papers, and conducted with real ability. Bro. Haley, 
of Melbourne, is making the Watchman a power that 
is felt. 

Scattered over these vast Southern seas there are 
still untamed lands and unredeemed peoples, and at 
no great distance, India, China and Japan. Is it not 
time that a common, loving effort be made by the 
combined churches of America, England, and of these 
Colonies, to Garry the gospel to lands still benighted, 
and " sitting in the darkness and in the valley of the 
shadow of death " ? Would it not be well for at least 
one representative from the churches of Australia, 
and one or two from Great Britain, to meet with the 
brethren assembled at the next great annual gather- 
ing in America, so that some such work will be in- 



BOUND FOR HOME. 221 

augurated as will call out all our benevolence, absorb 
all our energies, and swallow up all complaints, and 
prove a starting-point from which shall be dated 
the salvation of multitudes? The heart of the Aus- 
tralian brotherhood is large, and devises liberal 
things. Their unstinted kindness to us, wherever we 
went, will be sweet memories forever. Is it not the 
duty of the present hour, that for united work for the 
honor of Christ and the salvation of men, some effort 
be made to gather together in one grand family feder- 
ation and compact, all the children of God who are 
scattered abroad? 

On board the John Elder I preached three times ; 
on the voyage to New York it was too stormy the 
only Lord's day it might have been possible. 

The pen must now be laid aside ; our long journey, 
embracing the round world, with all its perils, has 
come to 3n end; but its joys and pleasures belong 
to the imperishable. 

Wonderful indeed are the Colonies in these far-off 
lands ; wonderful is the work, it seemed to us, the 
churches have there done ; and wonderful the grand 
possibilities and solemn responsibilities placed upon 
us and before us a people. May we be found ready 
for the work. 

As Bro. Coop has really participated in all these 
matters so much, it is only fitting that this letter 
be signed in harmony, with the first. 

T. Coop, H. Exley. 

October 27, 1881. 



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